Cherry Petals
by yu-pon
Summary: The love story between Hisana and Kuchiki Byakuya -- the author covers how they met, fell in love, overcome the many obstacles that they faced.
1. 一 Encounter : Hisana

**Cherry Petals ~サクランボノハナビラ~**

**出会い ~緋真~ (Encounter ~ Hisana ~)**

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**Greetings!  
**Thank you for stumbling onto this tiny story~  
The title reads "Sakuranbo no Hanabira " - I translated it to Cherry Petals for everyone's convenience.  
I was not supposed to write anything; but I could not stop inspiration from knocking my head.

Disclaimer(s): I do not own Bleach and their characters (definitely); they are all masterpieces from Kubo-sensei~

Some parts may sound wierd in English; because I was visualising the dialogue in Japanese haha.  
誤解されたら、申し訳ありませんでした！(If I had caused any misunderstandings, I'm terribly sorry for that)

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Do you believe in miracles?  
You might not, that's because you haven't met one.  
No, Miracles do not land upon you like a beam of strong and bright light; they differ to each and every single one of us – they have colors.  
Miracles are a sneaky thing; they often keep themselves invisible and moved around silently.  
Miracles are a strange thing; they laugh and cry and had a lot of emotions.

I know that because I have met a miracle.  
I, who deserved a miracle the least, met one.

This miracle was someone who lost _her_ balance and fell down from the tree branch.  
As _she _lay on the floor motionless, I wondered if _she_ was a fallen shooting star.  
For it was rare in Rukongai to see someone with such fair skin color donning a white hakama.

_That's right, my miracle was white in color._

I was dazzled; for it shone like a diamond amongst the dilapidated huts and pale fir trees.  
It was so bright, that it almost purified every bit of darkness in the area.  
I hid behind the sundries rack, as the fallen star began to sit up.

" Argh! Shihouin Yoruichi, that dumb feline! " The star yelled.

It was then I realized that the fallen star was a male.

He was extremely angry and stomped the hard ground with both of his elbows.  
Just as he was about to stand up, he crouched in pain.

" Damn it, not at this place! "He muttered.

_Sometimes, when the memories get vague, I tend to commit silly mistakes; I fill the gaps with my own imagination. I think and convince myself that these things actually happen – then I'll smile again. That I've lived a dream and it was a very happy one. Even up till now, I still question the truth behind these memories I have._

The boy made various attempts to stand up straight, but it looks like he had fractured his ankle. He staggered and limped away and fell multiple times. Each time he fell, he would curse "Shihouin Yoruichi "; yet he never once sought help from the watching passer-bys of Rukongai – he gave a look that irked the sight of these people.

It was then he knocked over the rack of sundries accidentally.  
What he was staring next, was not at the fallen sundries, but rather the startled look that I had.  
_Somehow he knew I was peeping at him from a distance._

His eyes twitched a bit.  
" What are you doing here? "

It was apparent, that he was not very happy about it.

" I... I …, "I could not find a proper excuse to justify myself from standing at that position, I trembled with fear as he kept his stare locked on. As I back stepped every time he came closer, his stare got so intense that I slipped.

The last scene I saw was his eyes, it grew a little larger. It showed concern.

_Bump!_

_At least, he is not a bad guy._

" I'm sorry! "I was sitting on the ground – he had not pulled out his hand to break my fall – he stood there looking at how foolish I was. His eyes then looked sideways.

" Do you know where I can get a doctor? "His mouth was slightly twisted. I took another look at his leg, it was badly dislocated for he had landed with his legs first. Yet, he could still walk such a distance – it could only be considered a feat.

" There is one, but... "

" Speak, " he demanded.

" He's located very far away from here, " I replied with my head looking down and my fingers still shivered in fear.

" Take me there, " He looked to the side again.

" H...Hai! "My voice weakened every time I spoke to this person. I could scream very loudly for help and could catch the attention of the citizens; but I could not even raise another decibel when I was speaking to him.

As I was pretty aware the last thing he would want to do was to touch me, I brushed off all the dirt that had fallen on my yukata and walked very slowly – I made sure I was only three steps away from him. As long as I can hear his footsteps tapping the ground in a non rhythmic manner, I know he's following me.

Suddenly it stopped.

" Oi, " He raised his voice a little.

I turned back and I saw sweat drops trickling down his forehead.  
The pain must have been so unbearable.

" Are you okay? "

He spoke as he was panting away, "I... I …I'm okay... "And he'll always look sideways when he is done with speaking with me.

" But you don't look okay, " I tried to let him know of his condition.

" You! How...dare you answer back! "He got angry again.

" Please wait here, " As I sprinted down the row of huts; I tried to ignore his yells that were projected at me – there was something more important than him right now. I asked around if they have seen what I want; I looked in every corner of the alleys before I found what I had needed concealed by a stack of hay.

I pushed it with all my might and made my way back to where he was.

I would not be surprised if I had not seen him there. He might have sought for other people's help and left; or he might have recovered and darted away from this area.

Instead, I saw his angry face when I came back with a cart._ Again._  
I had expected him to say something like "What took you so long? "Or "How could make me wait here?"

" This... Ano... "I tried to find the proper words to explain to him; I tried to appease him.

I caught his face one more time; he looked shocked.

_He said something else; and he made sure he said it in a way that it was so inaudible; that it could only be heard by the two of us._

" … Thank you... "He looked away as his shoulder-length hair covered part of his face.

I got him to the doctor's and stood outside while waiting for the verdict.

I got worried as soon as I heard him yelling away as they fixed his bone. He scolded the doctor for touching his skin, and instructed the nurse to ensure that they would not dirty his clothes. I guess I got myself quite accustomed to his haughty manner that it did not matter to me if he had revealed that he was a Prince from some faraway land.

The doctor walked out of the room and remarked that he was a special child.

He recovered so quickly that before the doctor could wrap up the wound; he gave the doctor a reflexive kick. He was so full of energy that he threatened the doctor if they were to reveal what happened today. I giggled and was relieved that he was okay now.

" Would you like to see him now? "The doctor asked.

" It's okay. He does not like me at all, "I replied softly.

_That's true; he does not like me at all_. Yet, I will always hold this memory very close to me; the memory of him hating me. It may not be the only memory; but it will always be the first. It was amusing to recall the events that happened then. Who would ever have expected that that limping spoilt prince turned out to be my sole miracle in life? The miracle that held my hand and said things that I would never dream of hearing; The miracle that took me to places where I never thought of seeing; The same miracle that fulfilled wishes I've never made.

This miracle had a beautiful name, _Kuchiki Byakuya._

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**yu-pon's note:  
**Thank you for reading!!! Hope you liked it~!!  
_I actually feel very guilty now; because i broke my own promise to take the weekend off._  
Instead of resting, I wrote a new fic!? (ARGH)  
Sunday will definitely be an off day!

I might have startled someone by starting off this story with Hisana narrating.  
(Actually...this story is intended to be written in a different manner. So look out who's in the "~~" at the title page. In this Chapter, it's **~緋真~** so it means it's Hisana's. )

I don't know if I should continue with this fic, please let me know?

**Translation notes:**  
I've used some Japanese in this chapter; shall identify the non-English words out!  
**1.** **Rukongai** - That's the slum area where Hisana lives; it was mentioned during the course of the actual storyline.  
**2. Hakama **- This is a traditional Japanese costume; used to be worn by males only; but now Shrine Maidens also don hakamas - I can't exactly explain how it looks like but you can click here for pictures of it - _Thank you wikipedia~_  
**3. Yukata** - Hmm! Traditional Japanese costume too~ it looks like a Kimono but it's less sophisticated; because it's meant to be worn during summer time!! Click here for pictures of it - _Once again, thank you wikipedia~~  
_**4. Ano... **- It's a thinking word here, something like " erm... "~ haha although this word has many other uses; I meant it to use as a thinking word here~

If there's a next chapter, I'll meet everyone there again!  
ほなおつー

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	2. 二 Noise : Byakuya

_**Cherry Petals ~**__**サクランボノハナビラ**_

**2. ****騒ぐ****白哉****~ (Noise ~Byakuya~)  
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**_I should at least notify that this chapter, well... it's not on Hisana x Byakuya -- but it will lead to one soon~ XDDD_

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**_I don't like girls at all.  
They are a very noisy bunch of people. _

"Oya~ Byakuya-go!!! Let's go out and play!" Shihouin Yoruichi made a funny face before disappearing at the Kuchiki's main gate; she would always make her entrance into the Manor with her Shunpo (Flash Steps).

Shihouin Yoruichi is famously known as the Gotei 13's 2nd Division Captain, yet she cares more about having fun than serious business. Dark-skinned and a lean built, Yoruichi-san loves to pick on my height by pulling my hair or slapping my head. It seemed like the 2nd Division, Special Forces Division, had not a lot of missions to carry out during peaceful times. Unlike Grandpa who always had to work overnight at the 6th Division, Yoruichi-san paid weekly visits to the Kuchiki Manor, keeping her promise to Grandpa that she would take good care of me - in an extremely annoying way. She happened to be one of the very few people around me who go around calling me by my name; we share a strange relationship that hung between siblings and childhood playmates.

I had already anticipated that she would appear behind me – I turned around and tried to grab her with my bare hands.

"Not so agile today huh, Byakuya-go~~ " Yoruichi-san teased again as she hopped up the tree trunk. She bent down and stared at my bandaged leg, with her hands crossed at her waist.

If my leg was not recovering, I would have chased after that were-cat and plucked out all her fur.

"Hmm? My dear Byakuya boy is injured?! What happened?" The black-haired ponytail captain asked in curiosity.

_To think, she had the cheek to ask that!_ It was all her fault that I fell into the depths of Rukongai – her so-called tag game – she transformed into a cat and jumped off from the dilapidated hut which could not support a man's weight. As I was unable to perform this kind of voodoo trick, I had shifted my movements onto the thin branches of the fir tree – which gave way and I fell before I was able to dart to the next tree.

The bones had healed; it just required some more time before I can start playing tag with Yoruichi-san again. I was still limping around – at least now I could walk little steps now – the use of a wooden crutch would be faster.

Yoruichi-san jumped down from the tree and carried the partial-handicap me in her arms before she flash-stepped onto the rooftop. She then showed me her silly grin before she spoke "So what happened after you stopped chasing me? "

"I fell, thanks to your shape-shifting voodoo, " I muttered angrily.

"I should probably teach you that skill,"Yoruichi-san looked up at the sky, with her arms folded.

"Urgh! Hell no I'm learning that! "

"Ah~ If it's Byakuya – I think you will turn into a white rabbit or something, ha-ha! " Yoruichi-san laughed and slapped the roof tiles while her legs were waving frantically in an up-down motion. I shot her a very irritated look, my left eye was twitching with anger. I calmed down only after her voice became slightly serious. "So what happened? How did you get to the doctor's with a broken leg? It's definitely impossible you walked there. "

I paused for a while. If Yoruichi-san had not asked me that question, I might have totally forgotten about it. _How did I get to the doctor's?_

"A girl helped me out, "I tried to whisper the words out softly. My eyes slowly shifted to the golden-orange roof.

"She must have been a very strong girl, "Yoruichi-san commented.

"Yea, she ran down the streets and found a small cart and..." I sounded excited all of a sudden, I even chuckled as I reached the end of the sentence.

"Oho! That's sweet~~" Yoruichi-san snapped in and nudged my arm.

"It's not! She's just trying to get me to the doctor, that's all, "I stood up, with the sole intention of heading back into the Manor; but ended up staggering horizontally across the roof. Yoruichi-san grabbed me by the sleeve and forced me to sit down beside her.

"So...Did you thank her? " Yoruichi-san turned her body and faced me with her legs crossed. She peered closer at me with her topaz-colored eyes and grinned; she wanted to know more. I turned away and looked at the sliding roof tiles instead – it had an awkward feeling to it.

_That is why I don't like girls.  
They persist and they probe with their questions.  
They have a way to look at you with their eyes; until you say nothing but the truth._

_It's irritating._

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_"No, she left before I walked out of the clinic, "I gave in to her interrogation.

"Oh? " Yoruichi-san seemed surprised by the change of events.

"Not like its very important right, "I tried to hop across the roof with my left leg – _Yoruichi-san is going to ask questions again._

Yoruichi-san snickered as if she was saying _you can't get away, Byakuya. _She flash-stepped and appeared right in front of me. I gritted my teeth as she bent over and pointed her finger at my nose – Yoruichi-san was mocking at my height, once more.  
"It is important, Byakuya-go, "The feline ruffled my hair before she back-flipped twice, and folded her arms again.

"Go and thank her, "Yoruichi-san spoke with authority this time.

"Or... I won't return you your ribbon!! "She dangled Grandpa's gift mischievously.

_Girls, they just won't give up so easily.  
They tell you to do this, and yet they don't explain why they want you to.  
They trick you into believing they are always right.  
Girls are a sinister lot, aren't they?_

"Argh, Shihouin Yoruichi!! Wait till my leg fully recovers, I am going to make sure I will tie a bomb to that tail of yours!! "I charged towards the 2nd Captain; who flung her haori towards me and jumped over my head.

"Hahaha! You are NEVER going to catch me, Byakuya-go! "Yoruichi-san laughed heartily as she grabbed me and darted towards the veranda.

"I'll find her for you, but you'll have to thank her yourself. Okay? "I had remembered that embarking on tracking missions are Yoruichi-san's forte.

"I can't remember how she looked like, "I protested weakly. I knew I had to thank that girl for helping out – returning the gratitude offered was part of my family's code, anyway.

"What was she wearing then? "

"A sand-colored yukata. She had dark hair and violet eyes," The memories began to find its way back to me as I recalled staring into her eyes which made her so frightened that she landed on the ground with a hard bump.

"Okay, sounds easy~~ I'll find her!" Yoruichi-san winked and showed me a thumbs-up.

"What makes you so sure? " I took a look at Yoruichi-san; she seemed pumped up for this tiny _mission_.

"Violet," The Secret Corps Captain pointed out and whispered into my ear.

_Yoruichi-san said, Violet is a rare color._

"By the way, she's from Rukongai. Is it okay... "I wanted to say something that might anger Yoruichi-san, but decided to stop. Since young, I was taught that people who lived in Rukongai were uncivilized and unscrupulous – they were 'untouchables', like my relatives would always say. My relatives had a lot of stories that circled around the noble families – rumors that these Rukongai villagers knew of spells that will weaken their targets upon eye contact; they will then lure you to a cave where they rob you of your belongings – for every single item that the noble families possess is worth heaps of gold over at Rukongai.

There were classes in Soul Society – The Royal Family, followed by The Four Great Noble Families; the souls residing in Rukongai were ranked last. Yoruichi-san and I belonged to the second class; yet we had different perspectives towards Rukongai. I feared Rukongai while she accepted that place with open arms.

"Rukongai or not, you have to say it. After all, wouldn't the noble Kuchiki clan crumble if their next head were to be so rude? "Yoruichi-san jeered. What I respected about Yoruichi-san was that she was a brave woman. She had held on to the belief that every single entity that resided in Soul Society belonged to the same class; that there was no harm in making friends from Rukongai. She always loathed the fact that she came from a noble family, which became a barrier whenever she wanted to make more friends.

"Fine! Go find her then! "I held on to my crutches and stomped off angrily. I was angry not because of Yoruichi-san's taunting; I was frustrated because she was right, that it took so long for me to see it.

Shihouin Yoruichi smiled to herself then jumped to her feet, made a tiny wave with her right hand and vanished out of the main gate.

_That's the problem with girls.  
They are always able to squeeze their way out of you.  
They deceive; and then they will convince you.  
When you had least noticed it, they will take everything away from you – including your heart._

_I really don't like them._

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**yu-pon's note:**

Hello! I'm back with Chapter 2~ (surprise surprise)  
Thank you for the reviews! Thank you so much for reading too!!!  
I've decided to continue with the story, after all XDDDD  
Oh~ it's a Byakuya chapter this time! hahaha -- it's a Hisana x Byakuya fic okay (so the final lines are not meant partly for Yoruichi and...? )

This follows the Turn Back the Pendulum time frame (so at that time Byakuya was still a teenager haha~) --

**Translation notes and minor explanations:**  
1. Oya~ Byakuya-go! : This can be heard from Episode... 203? Yoruichi loves to tease Byakuya that he's still a little boy (hence Byakuya-go -- Little Byakuya). Oya is like " heyy~~ "in a elderly manner ~~ the way Yoruichi loves to speak - I realise Urahara Kisuke also speaks in this manner XDD  
2. Shunpo (瞬歩) - Flash Steps; the hi-speed movement shingamis/espadas/vizards always use ~  
3. Yoruichi-san - Ah i used the affix "-san" because I got accustomed to Kurosaki Ichigo calling her by that - Also I feel although Kuchiki Byakuya might not say it, he respects her a lot actually (smiles)  
4. Haori - Wow this is traditional Japanese costume - You know Yoruichi wears a white jacket-like Captain outer on top of her Secret Corps full-black outfit? All Captains wear that - that white jacket is called a Haori.

Chapter 3, Kuchiki Byakuya will say thank you to Hisana -- in his own way.  
I'll make it sweet - I'll try!!

I'll see you guys again for Chapter 3!  
ほなおつー


	3. 三 Violet : Hisana

**Cherry Petals ~****サクランボノハナビラ**

**3. ****紫**** ~緋真****~ (Violet ~Hisana~)**

_He said with a shy look on his face_  
" _Violet is nice." and covered his eyes with his right hand.  
I asked, with that burning curiosity in me_  
" _Then why won't you look at me? "_

_He did not say a word._

Soul Society was made up of different classes and ranks. Everything was arranged in a hierarchy – from the day you were brought into this world. If you are lucky, you form up the tiny percentage that made up the noble families; if you are not, you will then end up as the majority that lived in Rukongai.

Rukongai alone, was split into 80 districts, and had a way with sorting the type of people that formed the majority of a particular district. While District 1(Junrinan) was the most peaceful district in Rukongai; it also meant that District 80 was the worst. The logic behind Rukongai is simple – 'atonement' – if you had been a splendid person with a pure heart; you will most likely be residing in the top districts; if you had committed atrocious sins, the exact opposite will happen to you. You end up in the last few districts and you atone for your sins.

_I was born into District 78, along with her._

While most souls had faint memories about the time when they were still living; I had none. The only names I remembered were the ones the Shinigami kept telling me when he sent me to Soul Society - Hisana and Rukia – while Hisana was my name, who was Rukia? That was when I realized I was carrying a child in my arms. We shared the same eye, hair and skin color; our age difference was too small to be considered mother and daughter – so I had assumed her to be my sister. She should be Rukia, the other name I heard from the Shinigami.

Rukia was only a newborn then.

She was a brave child and barely cried; she would look into my eyes and reach out her hands to touch it – as if she was trying to wipe away my tears. There was only one problem, Rukia needed milk – and it was very expensive to get it in Inuzuri. I could barely even get food for my own; let alone afford milk for Rukia. Rukia knows about this, that was why she never cried – she never once said she was 'hungry' even when I knew she needed food.

That was when I heard the townsfolk saying, that when a soul dies in Soul Society; the soul gets reborn into the real world again. They tried to talk me into committing atrocious sins, again.

_I am the worst sister one could ever have._

The tainted thought of killing my own sister. If what the townsfolk said were to be true, Rukia might get a chance to live as a better person in her next life – wouldn't that be better than surviving this living hell? I hesitated. I recalled the logic behind Rukongai – you enter a district based on your past sins. Would it happen the other way round? Would you suffer in the real world, if you had committed atrocious sins and died in Rukongai? The last thing I wished for Rukia would be to see her suffer any further – I wanted to put an end to it; but was unable to if she were to continue to live with me.

I was sure that after what I have done to my little sister, a Shinigami would appear and transfer me to District 80 Zaraki – it was such a loathsome thought, after all. I continued making my way to the border where District 77 was, hoping to give Rukia a better life than mine. That was when I chanced upon a family that was dining together in their small brown hut. I thought, perhaps they will take you in and provide you with food; that you would be able to have a family.

I made that cruel decision. I left your frail body beside that hut while I kept a piece of paper inside the cloth that wrapped you – that paper had your name. I made a silent promise that I will find you if I had found myself a better life. As I took one final look at your face, you were smiling at me – it filled my entire heart with guilt – I'm sorry, Rukia. I ran as far as I could, with no intended direction – all I cared was to run away as far as possible; hoping that the memory of your face will vanish and be blown away by the wind. As I stopped by a running stream, I splashed water on my face repeatedly – but the sin I had just committed would not go away. I stared at my own reflection and saw the color of my eyes – it looked just like Rukia. These eyes, they had just been cursed with guilt. I looked up at the blue sky and made a promise that today would be last sin I will ever commit; that I will make sure I will lead a good life – so that when I find Rukia again, she too, will have a better life.

I roamed aimlessly and reached another village – it looked quite the same like my previous place – except that there were greener trees and the skies had whiter clouds. I survived by offering to deliver well water to the elderly villagers for a meager sum of money – I saved up large portion of it, with hopes to give Rukia and I a better life; while the rest were used up for basic survival.

I helped out every time I caught someone in distress; it was the only way to atone for those grave sins. Occasionally, I would remember the different people I meet – the granny who always called me by a wrong name, the family who would charge me lesser for the rice balls they sell, the little girl who made me a ribbon when I found her kite; and that limping boy who cursed madly in the clinic when they tried to fix his dislocated leg.

_I wonder how he is doing now. _

One night while fetching water for an old lady, I met a strange creature. It did nothing except remaining at the same spot, overlooking the well where I was carrying water from. It continued to stare as I walked towards it. I bent down and asked the creature if it wanted water; it responded by stroking its head on my wrist – I laughed because the fur was ticklish. I scooped out the water with both palms and offered to the creature – it purred and licked my hand dry. The silver moon shone down on the both of us, I looked at the creature's yellow eyes and apologized.

"I'm sorry, little black one. I promised an old lady that I would give her this." I pointed to the pail

The black creature stretched its body and purred softly. I gave the head a little pat as I went over to lift the wooden pail, the black creature followed beside me as I made my way to the old lady's hut. I collected the pennies from the old lady and used a part of it buy a rice ball – I shared a third of it with the black creature. The black creature stroked my wrist once more – I smiled this time.

"I have to go now, little black one. See you soon~" I waved to the black creature before I made my way home. Somehow, the chance meeting with the animal lifted some of my spirits,

Peculiar things do happen at Rukongai. As a wandering soul at Rukongai, I too get frightened by such things – even though we may be the ones that are doing the scaring over at the real world.

The black creature was standing at my doorstep way before I reached home. I tilted my head as I wondered how it managed to find its way here. If things weren't any stranger, I heard a voice coming out of nowhere.

" Oya~ I found you," It spoke in a deep voice and had a weird accent; like that of an old man.

"Hehhh?" I staggered a few steps backwards, my hands covering the astonishment that was pouring out of my mouth. _  
Whose voice did it belong to?_

"This must be a hallucination..." I whispered to myself.

I must have been too overwhelmed by fatigue; this is all imaginary.

The cat jumped up to the wooden plank and turned to look at me.  
"I'm here I'm here~~" The ebony-furred feline spoke as it pulled out its paw and waved.

"You can talk?" I continued to stare at its yellow eyes in disbelief.

"My name is Yoruichi, " The cat moved over to a straw sieve and waited; as if it wanted to know my name too.

"I...I'm Hisana," I refuse to believe that I just performed a self-introduction with a cat. I was so nervous I found myself stuttering.

"Anyway, you stay put! I'm bringing someone over now..." The cat began to leap far and ran at top speed.

"At this hour?" I tried to project my voice louder.

"It's alright! It's alright! Wait there, young girl!" The cat disappeared into the dark silhouettes of trees and branches.

I sat on the small curb where the front door was. Yoruichi the cat said "to stay put" - I had not entered the house. This house used to be that old lady's son, but he left to become a Shinigami and would not be coming back any time soon – so I rented it from her. It had a nice view of the night sky. Stars would always gather around this area because there are lesser clouds in here. The trees hardly moved, but there was always a silent breeze that cooled the area. Everything moved in a quiet manner – it gave me the needed peace that I've longed for. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the cool breeze blowing onto my cheeks; tilting my legs to-and-fro in a non-rhythmic manner.

Just then, a commotion broke the silence.  
A commotion between a lady and a boy. They were bickering with one another.

"What on earth are you taking me to, you were-cat?" The boy asked grumpily

"You promised didn't you? You don't want your ribbon?" The lady hissed.

"Argh my ribbon, return it to me already! What promise?" He seemed confused.

"Your life-saving benefactor,"

"Ah," The boy fell silent after that.

"You don't do this, I'll tell Ginrei-san," The lady threatened and giggled mischievously.

"Okay. You try to hide yourself somewhere. Don't you dare eavesdrop," The boy warned.

"Who knows I won't do that?" The lady spoke in a lyrical tune.

"You!!!"This angry-toned boy sounded extremely familiar; perhaps he happened to one of the customer's grandson I met this morning.

I had no idea where they were coming from; I only knew they were approaching for the voices get louder each time they conversed. I tried to follow the voices but there was nothing in front of me. That was when I saw a shadow of a figure – it was a girl with long shoulder length and she limped slowly towards me – have I met her before? When the moonlight finally revealed who the stranger was, I smiled,

"I thought you were a girl again,"

The boy did not say a word.  
He had this frustrated face on him, as if it was not his intentions to see me right here.

"It's late. How did you find me here?" I tried to be oblivious of the fact that he was angry.

"It's all because of that stupid cat and her stupid ideas..." He began muttering away.

"Cat? Yoruichi?" I managed to catch one word; I had only remembered one cat.

He looked surprised this time.  
"You...know her?"

"Not really, just today. She just went off. She said she was going to find someone and come back,"

"Oh," The fair-skinned boy gritted his teeth before he walked closer to me.

"What brings you here?"

Under the bright moonlight, I must have looked extremely hideous with all the dirt on my face. I did not even have the chance to wash up before meeting this unexpected guest – I thought Yoruichi was going to bring along another feline that talked. The boy stared into my eyes again, just that this time it was closer. That feeling was so awkward; it was my turn to look away.

" Your eyes... " He was still following the pupils when he suddenly covered his own with his right palm.

What about those eyes?  
Are you telling me that they look scary?

_You should probably fear them, because these are the eyes of a murderer._

"Violet...It is a nice color," He said it with his eyes still blocked out.

_Stop it. I don't like the color at all._

"Then...Why is it so hard to look at them?" I had wanted to know the answer myself; ever since that day, I had not once looked into my own reflection.

He had gone silent. The moonlight had dimmed for the gray clouds were making their way across the dark sky. He took off his right palm and said,

"Because, it feels like another part of me will spill out anytime,"

He spoke in an inaudible tone and looked at the floor.  
There was a small twitch on his lips, as if he had said something he should not have said.

_It was so strange. The words that he said made no sense.  
Yet, I felt I could picture what he wanted to say as well.  
It was that kind of indescribable awkwardness I get when I stared into my own eyes.  
That part of me that I wanted no one to see, it felt like it was jumping out._

"Naa, girl," That haughty boy was climbing its way back. He touched the back of his hair as he continued,

"I would like to thank you,"

"Hmm? For?"

"This," He had pointed at his bandaged leg.

"Oh, not at all," I had realized the reason why he came over.

"And..." The boy seemed like he was glowing under the moonlight the instant the clouds moved away. It was his light skin tone that gave me the illusion of a fallen star.

_There was something else? _

"This. It is Yoruichi-san's idea to take you. She said it would be a good way to thank you,"

I laughed out uncontrollably. _A boy with so much pride would take advices from a talking cat?_

"What's so funny?" He questioned like a prince.

"Somehow, the two of you are adorable together," I rubbed off the tear that was about to fall out of my right eye.

"Just go to this okay ! Three days later!" He slipped the paper into my pocket and tried limping away as quickly as he could. He called out Yoruichi's name in a grouchy tone; a black shadow flashed past the woods and the boy was no longer seen.

I reached out for the paper the boy had given me.

It wrote "Fireworks Festival" on one side.  
A map on the other side directed me to this pavilion with the sole instruction "Wait here" scribbled above it.

My head was not focusing much on the map anyway.  
It was repeating that one sentence the boy said about those eyes,  
That he did not dislike that it was made up of that color.

I had not once asked for his name; I only remembered he's "that angry boy".  
Yet I was glad that I've met this boy today, for the first time; for...

_Violet had never been a prettier color until he made it to be._

_

* * *

_**yu-pon's note:  
**Thank you for reading!  
(even if this line appears at every chapter, I will still say the same thing.)

Done! Chapter 3!!  
This is really random: sometimes i scream like a fangirl at certain things that come out from my keyboard.  
(like I wrote that line, but I felt like telling myself "omg!!!how did you think of this!?"~)  
That incident occured when I wrote this chapter. haha.

**Translation Notes:  
Junrinan, Zaraki, Inuzuri **- District Names for #1, #80 and #78 respectively.

**Kuchiki Ginrei **- Byakuya's Grandpa~ XDD

Chapter 4 is...? XDD It's not too hard to figure out what it would be about.  
I'm attempting a sad chapter. aww.

Weekend's arriving! Yippee~  
Shall reply to the reviews before I log off! Thank you, once again for reviewing!!!  
(breathes in nervously) okay I shall enable anonymous reviewing~  
but if you would like a reply from me.. because I always do, haha please log in.

See ya guys soon!

yu-pon  
ほなおつー


	4. 四 Sparklers : Byakuya

**Cherry Petals ~****サクランボノハナビラ~**

**4. ****線香花火**** ~白哉****~ (Sparklers ~Byakuya~)**

_That night, it rained stars.  
We didn't know what that was, so we called that 'magic'.  
When it was over, I made a silly wish._

_I wished you would not say goodbye._

"It's the Fireworks Festival!" Yoruichi-san danced around excitedly. As long as the event revolves around fun, she would express full enthusiasm – so much so she was part of the organizing committee. She decided to bring me to the venue for a sneak peek on all the decorations she had been planning since last month.

"Yo-ru-i-chi saan~" came a voice that popped out from behind.

"Kisuke!" Yoruichi-san flashed a grin at this guy who was in Shinigami outfit; she shook his shoulders as he began to yawn lazily and scratched his fringe.

"Excuse me, Yoruichi-san..."

"Hmm? What is it, Byakuya-go?"

"Are you asking your Division's people to help out in this private event?"

That guy and Yoruichi-san looked at one another and then they started laughing in unison.

"Oh no no you got it all wrong. Urahara Kisuke, my third seat officer and best friend. He's the organizer of this event." The captain placed her shoulder on the tall, blonde-haired Shinigami.

"This little boy here is Kuchiki-san's grandson," That was how Yoruichi-san introduced me to Urahara Kisuke, who looked over curiously.

"I'm not little!" I protested.

"Nice to meet you, Kuchiki-san~" Urahara Kisuke took a bow.

Urahara Kisuke is a hidden talent for the 2nd Division, a pure inventor – I've heard a lot about him but had not met the real person until today – because he was always dispatched out for missions. I had known that Yoruichi-san appreciates his potential a lot. Both of them have been best friends since young, so Urahara Kisuke doesn't really care much about the use of formalities when he's talking to his own captain. He spoke with a funny accent, and his tone sounded like the notes were hanging onto some kind of balloon – it suited his attitude sometimes.

"Nice...To meet you too," I replied, still not getting used to using the polite way to greet someone.

"Kisuke, take us there. I want to show this boy what you can do,"

"Yoruichi-san, don't spoil the fun! Have patience!" Urahara Kisuke whined.

"At least let us know something today!" Yoruichi-san was too eager to know what to expect for tomorrow's event. She always hated the idea of people hiding things away from her, especially her close friends.

"Okay, Come with me then," Urahara Kisuke gave up and signaled the two of us to follow him.

Yoruichi-san grinned at her victory and took my hand as we followed Urahara Kisuke's lead. He did not reveal much about the festival for he had intended it to be a surprise. The event would display some of his inventions which he had been researching in his own room for months.

We walked into the depths of the 2nd Division, passing by the quarters where the seated officers would gather after carrying out their missions to talk about their adventures. I had been inside the 2nd Division for a few times – but I was definitely sure, the place where that tall man was taking us to, made me question my familiarity of this place.

"Naa, Yoruichi-san,"

"What is it?"

"Where are we now?" The three of us reached a jetty.

"This...Is the 2nd Division, I guess," Yoruichi-san sounded pretty unsure herself.

"I've never seen this before. Even with all the tours you gave me."

"That's because Kisuke didn't want you to see it, yet." Yoruichi-san defended for her officer, she scratched her head as she looked at his back, waiting for a proper answer from him.

Urahara Kisuke stopped walking and turned to the two of us.  
"It's not something worth looking at anyway...Well, not until it's been completed," he said as he ruffled the back of his head.

There were wooden boats floating on the jetty.  
"Well, everything will start from here," Urahara Kisuke had a painful expression on his face.

"Kisuke..." The 2nd Division Captain snapped in, with a solemn tone.

"Yes, Yoruichi-san?"

"It's okay. Don't say a word. Be sure to surprise all of us tomorrow," Yoruichi-san seemed to have understood her officer's intentions.

He smiled, in a relieved manner,

"I will, Yoruichi-san,"

"We should not bother Kisuke right? Let's go, Byakuya-go," Yoruichi-san waved to Urahara Kisuke as we left the festival's venue.

I could tell, even though I had not wanted Yoruichi-san to know – that the two shared a deeper bond than just friends. They were so close that they could understand each other's thoughts.

"Oh, Byakuya-go," Yoruichi-san spoke suddenly.

"What happened, Yoruichi-san?"

"Kisuke said we have to wear yukatas there tomorrow,"

"Why?"

"Because it's something that's off-duty,"

"Okay, I will have to try to sneak one out tomorrow," I muttered reluctantly.  
Yukatas were clothing worn by many during summer time – because the textile used for the apparel was not able to trap heat easily. I hardly wore yukatas out of my own residence because it would deem disrespectful for a noble to dress in this manner – for we only use them after taking a bath. Urahara Kisuke asking the invited guests to dress in yukatas simply meant 'Come in bath robes' to a Kuchiki member.

"Nah, Kisuke said he will provide us with it. Just be present tomorrow," Yoruichi-san assured me.

"And..." The captain gave me a sinister grin.

"And?"

"Hisana," She said a very foreign name.

"Hisana? Who is she?"

"That girl you invited for this event, don't you remember?" Yoruichi-san snickered.

"You were the one who wanted to invite her! Not me!"

Yoruichi-san laughed at my angered expression. She totally enjoyed looking at the agitated me whenever she talked about "that girl".

"We have to go pick her up at that pavilion, " Yoruichi-san reminded me.

"Okay, " I replied.

"In..." She had not finished her sentence. Slowly, she lifted her finger and pointed out.

"Yukatas," Yoruichi-san flashed her canine tooth at me and she giggled.

I cringed at the fact that I was going to show a Rukongai resident how I looked like in bath robes. It was definitely more embarrassing than having her to wheel me to the clinic.

"Come on, it's a Yukata. Not a bath robe," Yoruichi-san tried to talk me out of the impression I have for that summer wear. The only difference was that yukatas had a colored sash, whereas the bath robe were usually draped loosely – the material, and the prints used were the same. It only differed if you were a girl, for the guys, it was optional.

"Whatever," I knew Yoruichi-san would continue on nagging at me if I hadn't agreed with her.

"Tomorrow at my Manor, 4pm, " Yoruichi-san waved at me as I made my way home.

_That night, I could not close my eyes.  
I was not thinking about anything, but I just could not go to sleep.  
It's difficult to admit, that I was excited about tomorrow's event too._

_***  
_

I headed towards the exit of the Kuchiki Manor at 3.45pm; it wouldn't take me long if I used Shunpo to reach the 2nd Division. Just as I was about to leave, Grandpa caught me at the entrance.

"Byakuya, where are you going again?"

"Grandpa!" I had always been elated to see Grandpa because he hardly comes home.

"It's very uncommon not to see Byakuya training," Grandpa smiled at me.

"I wrapped up earlier, because I have to go see Yoruichi-san now,"

"For more training?" Grandpa frowned and sighed. "You should learn how to..."

"No, Yoruichi-san's house has a event going on tonight. I'm an invited guest so..."

"Hurry along then, Byakuya. It's not good to keep your host waiting," Grandpa seemed glad that my entire life wasn't about practicing with the wooden sword.

"Thank you, Grandpa!" I dashed out of the exit and rushed for the 2nd Division.

"Byakuya-go! Over here!" Yoruichi-san waved hardly as she stood in front of her main gate in her yukata. It was vermilion in color and had large flowery prints accompanied by golden sunbirds. For the first time, Yoruichi-san looked like a real princess from the Shihouin family.

"Hurry go get changed! We have a guest to pick up!" Yoruichi-san pushed me into the changing room.

I could not even choose the color I wanted; not even the pattern I preferred.  
Initially, everyone thought I was a girl until I started to yelp when someone gave me the wrong sash. In the end, the ladies agreed I would suit something that had suspended in between; so she took away the sash and fastened the yukata loosely with a black ribbon.

"Byakuya-go! Kakkoii!!!" Yoruichi-san clapped her hands.  
Mine was dark purple with silver bamboo shoots.

"I shall return you this," She finally returned my red ribbon.

"Can you keep it untied until today ends?" Yoruichi-san pleaded for a tiny extension.

"It doesn't matter anyway," I wore the ribbon on my right wrist instead.

"Aww, smile Byakuya!"  
I am still not used to wearing a bath robe out to the streets of Rukongai.

We rode a carriage to the pavilion and met the girl halfway; she was still referring to the map.  
When Yoruichi-san got off the carriage, the girl's eyes had two emotions – puzzled yet taken away.

"Hello Hisana!" Yoruichi-san folded both arms and smiled.

"You...You...are? Have I met you before?" She asked with her large round eyes.

"Yoruichi yo~" The captain pointed to her own nose.

"The cat?"

"That's me," Yoruichi-san grinned, she seemed proud of her cat-transforming skills.

"Nice to meet you today! You are really pretty, Yoruichi-san," The girl bowed quickly.

"Nah, there's a prettier one inside the carriage waiting," Yoruichi-san giggled.

_Was she talking about me?_

"Hop on, we still have to dress you up," Yoruichi-san offered her hand as she helped the girl up the steps.

"Don't be taken aback by what you see in the carriage," The cheeky captain whispered.

When she entered the carriage, she caught me folding my arms while my eyes were looking at the side window.  
I heard her gasp.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Hisana," Apparently, she could not recognize who I was.

"It's me," I told her.

"Ah!" She stood up anxiously; her head hit the ceiling with a soft bump.

Yoruichi-san was giggling away at her reactions.  
"Are you okay, Hisana?"

"I thought he was..."

"A girl, right. I know," I could even guess what she was trying to say. In fact, ever since she made that statement about mistaking my identity as a girl, the people around me started to see me as one too.

"Wow, Byakuya-go. You've got telepathy!"Yoruichi-san teased and made a funny face again. Hisana laughed at Yoruichi-san. I wondered if she was also laughing when I attacked Yoruichi-san inside the carriage – I tried to pull out her hairpin.

_How could I have telepathy with a girl I had barely even met?_

Yoruichi-san led her to the dressing room and told the chambermaids to give her a nice yukata to wear. Hisana went in for a very long time before the doors finally opened. As she stepped out of the door with her clogs, I stared in bewilderment.

_How was that even possible?_

She wore a faint pink yukata – the shade of pink was so light, it looked like white. It was filled with red prints of plum and cherry blossoms; her sash was orange-red and light pink stripes filled her waist. She kept looking at the floor as Yoruichi-san led her down the steps.

"Hisana, you look adorable today," Yoruichi-san said to her.

"Don't you think so, Byakuya-go?" The two ladies turned to look at me.

"Ah...Yeah," I couldn't even give a convincing answer. I tried to shake off the image of her walking down the steps with her faint pink yukata, but to no avail.

_Hisana, it would have been dangerous if you wore this yukata every day._

"Is it true?" Hisana asked meekly.

"Really. It's as if this yukata was tailor-made for you," Yoruichi-san nodded her head.  
I liked seeing Hisana smiling at Yoruichi-san. She had a different way when she smiled to that lady – there were no barriers.

As the sun disappeared into the mountains, we made our way to that jetty.  
Hisana walked very cautiously with her clogs for she had been used to walking barefoot at Rukongai; she often tripped when she crossed the wooden bridge, so Yoruichi-san had to hold her hand.

"Welcome~ to the Fireworks Festival," Urahara Kisuke stood where the wooden boats are. He was dressed in a light beige yukata with fine vertical stripes; his sash was of a dark gray that turned out perfectly appropriate. He had in his right hand a wooden umbrella – it opened up to a white colored filled with prints of large black swallows on the surface.

"Ah, this? I had to look different because I'm the organizer right," Urahara Kisuke struck a cheeky pose with the umbrella.

"Kisuke, I'd like you to meet my friend, Hisana," Yoruichi-san made a simple introduction.

"She's pretty. Can I take her...?"

"She's not yours," Yoruichi-san retorted.

"That's not fair, Yoruichi-san," Urahara Kisuke sighed and let us in on one of the wooden boats.

"How many people will be attending this festival?" I asked curiously for the one rowing the boat seemed to be the main organizer himself.  
Have the other guests proceeded to the venue itself?

"Let me see, erm... Four," He replied as he counted the number of people on the boat.

"Well, the committee board had only Kisuke and I as members," Yoruichi finally revealed the truth.

The tiny boat crossed the lake, which had red and yellow lanterns paving the directions to the island.

"This was how humans in the real world celebrated Fireworks Festival," The main organizer explained as the boat passed the rows of dimly-lit lanterns. He had been dispatched for a secret mission to the human world last month, and thought of bringing the festival back to Soul Society.

"Here we are," Urahara Kisuke stopped the boat and helped us down as we explored into the darkness. It was not long before the organizer spoke "This is where the magic begins," and smirked.

Yoruichi-san ran ahead of us to check what was waiting in front and we all heard her exclaim "It's so pretty! Everyone come over!" I could sense that Hisana was excited herself, she had struggled so much with the clogs but were running in them. When she overtook me, she turned back and smiled. Her shoulder-length hair swayed with the breeze as she reached out her right hand.

"Won't you want to see it too?"

I knew that I could have rejected that offer; I had the ability to do it – but why didn't I do that? She's from Rukongai, I had constantly reminded myself – I should not even touch her; not even with my eyes. Why did I look like a fool and stared at how stunning the yukata looked on her? Why was it so difficult to say no to her?

_Why did I even go to the extent of taking her hand?_

The sounds of her clogs rang in my head as we ran through the woods. As it got slower I finally had the chance to see what Yoruichi-san had been so enthralled over – there was a huge red shrine built along the lake's bend; and it glowed beautifully with the lanterns. A huge open space lay before the shrine. Yoruichi-san asked "What are we supposed to do now, Kisuke?" with her eyes gleaming for more.

"Sit here and enjoy the show, of course," He led us to the benches that had overlooked the other side of the lake we passed by earlier. The silver moon shone on the water surface, illuminating gently as the breeze blew past my cheeks. "Breathe in as much as you can now," Urahara Kisuke warned before he walked over to a yellow switch strapped to one of the trees.

_For this moment will leave you breathless._

The dark water surface glowed as multi colored swirls spun out and danced around in mid-air before disappearing; then another swirl will appear and take its former place. All of a sudden, bright colored sparks fired out from the sides of the lakes and dispersed across the black sky with shimmering dust. How did he do this? I liked the red ones – they would burst into huge flowers and then scatter diagonally like bright saffron powder. Yoruichi-san and Hisana would cheer for each and every different display of the fireworks – they held each other's hands while waiting impatiently for the next surprise; and then they will exclaim and wow at the exploding lights. Hisana loved the gold ones most; those that linger on and made the night sky glitter like diamonds – she would always point at the sky and have Urahara Kisuke to look at them, then she will thank him loudly. Yoruichi-san would always laugh whenever Urahara Kisuke blushed quietly.

_The air seemed thinner today.  
For some reason, it made breathing very difficult._

"This is for Yoruichi-san," The blonde-haired officer chuckled softly.

It was a silver firework of cat's face – both girls laughed really loudly upon seeing the huge face that covered part of the moon.

_My heart was blinded by a light.  
This light did not come from the fireworks._

Urahara Kisuke announced with a sad tone that the fireworks had ended.  
"But...The festival hasn't," Both girls seemed extremely excited when the man pulled out a huge box, with shiny sticks that stuck out at the top.

"They call this 'Sparklers' but I've improvised them a little," He pulled out twigs and began to light a small fire.

"Don't use up all of them okay. We want to play with it later," Urahara Kisuke dug out a paper fan and looked at Yoruichi-san. The two of them did their telepathy trick again - Yoruichi-san left to explore the shrine with Urahara Kisuke; while the two of us stayed behind.

An awkward air surrounded between the stranger and me.

"How...How do we play this?" Hisana explored the thin sticks.

"Sparklers. He just lighted the fire, so..." I placed one of the sticks near the cackling fire. As the stick glowed orange in color, sparks spewed out from the tip.

"Wow...Is this magic?" Hisana was entirely enchanted by what she was looking at, so much so she found it hard to explain what was happening – she decided to call it 'magic'.

_I couldn't reply her; I did not know the answer too._

_As that stick continued to burn, stars fell from it.  
The two of us would awe silently at how magic worked,  
No one knew the words to describe that moment._

_The sparkler would finish burning, and the magic would stop._

_Then...we would repeat it over and over._

All of a sudden, Hisana took one stick and poured the sparks on my head.  
"Look! It's raining stars!" She would laugh cheekily.

"It hurts! Stop it!" I would try to run away from the stinging sparks.  
Hisana would scream if I did the same, and then she would crack up laughing again.

_She had a laughter that could fill up the holes in one's heart._

"Ne ne~ should we visit that shrine?" Hisana asked.

"The one at the top of the stairs?" I have heard stories about that shrine – it could grant wishes if you put in your heart in it.

"Shall we?" Hisana really wanted to go.

"Okay," I held out my hand this time.

"I...am just returning the favor," I looked to the floor awkwardly. I had known that if I hadn't done that, she would have a hard time climbing up those steps in her new clogs – then Yoruichi-san will give me a tight slap on the head for not taking good care of a lady.

"Thank you," Hisana whispered.

That night, I made a tiny wish at the shrine.  
I was not sure how much of my heart was put into this wish.  
I wished that after today, the two of us would be given another opportunity to meet again.

Before I left the place, I had also made a tiny wager with fate._  
If Hisana had not said 'Goodbye', the wish will come true.  
_

When I overheard what she said, I knew.  
_My wish would come true._

* * *

**yu-pon's note:  
**How was it? Ah, this chapter didn't turn out to be sad.  
I couldn't bear to make it, haha.  
I just went on writing, and it became one of my longest chapters.

Thank you for reading!  
I'm glad when I saw people liking this story. Thank you so much for the kind reviews!  
(i'll say this again and again, because i'm really grateful.)

Actually, Chapter 5 will be a repeat of Chapter 4 - just to let you know.  
Same title, just different point of view.  
Girls are more... into details right ~~  
I'm so sure Byakuya said something more than this.. XDD

Okay, er.. I should mention something about the story I had intended to write?  
Their feelings for one another (up till now) are just... friendly. They are still kids, haha.  
I guess love takes time with two pretty dense characters --  
Regarding Urahara Kisuke and Shihouin Yoruichi, I'll leave it to your imagination - some of you like this pairing; some don't - that's why I left it hanging. They are very close friends to the extent their relationship appears to be rather ambiguous, that's the image I'm trying to portray.

**Translation notes:**  
**Shinigami **- Death God (smiles)  
**Fireworks Festivals** are held in Japan during August (Summer Season); people gather and they awe at the fireworks display.  
Usually, they dress themselves in yukatas when they go for such events.  
**Yukatas** have many varieties - until I feel it's more appropriate to look it up in the Internet on your own; because there's a lot of information about this traditional clothing - well I can tell you it's summer wear; and it resembles a less-sophisticated rendition of a full fledged kimono.

Chapter 5 then!  
ほなおつー


	5. 五 Sparklers : Hisana

**Cherry Petals ~****サクランボノハナビラ**

**5. ****線香花火 ****~緋真****~ (Sparklers ~Hisana~)**

_Happiness makes a person childish.  
If I see you smile, then I'll smile for no reason.  
You can't stop me at all,  
For it's a nice feeling to share this happiness._

In Rukongai, there were storytellers that would sit down under a huge sturdy tree and read to the villagers on a weekly basis. The stories they told never repeated; and had always managed to keep the listeners captivated. The old lady was a fan of the storyteller; she would always beg me to take her to that tree where she would listen closely to his stories. I would leave her there and continue my rounds of fetching water. After the session ended, she would always be filled with vigor as she narrated what she had remembered from his words. I would laugh to myself and tell her "Granny, these are stories. They never happen."

Granny always objected to that statement,

"Child, there's no such thing as never."

There are times Granny would believe in very kid-like things, in a very mature manner. She told me that everyone belonged to a fairytale. It would be exaggerating if they all had happy endings; but Granny said everyone would have had at least one happy moment that resembled that of fairytales.

"Granny, do you have one?"

"I do," She nodded.

"When he took me out to catch fireflies," The old woman smiled as she looked over at the old man sitting by the bench. This conversation reminded her of her younger days when her husband used to take her out for night adventures. She loved fireflies most – tiny frail blinking lights on the surface of the leaves. One has to be extremely quiet to catch a handful. "That man would say very sweet things when he hands over the fireflies," The old woman would giggle at her memories. I looked at her blissful smile and thought,

_Even in Rukongai, one could be very happy._

"What's yours?"

"Me? I don't have one," I replied softly.

Granny gave me a warm pat on my shoulders and I held her hand.  
"Granny?"

"Yes child?"

"I am unable to bring you here tomorrow for stories,"

"You have something on?"

"Yes, I have to attend an event."

"Okay," Granny seemed a little disappointed before she thought of an idea. "Why not tell me your story when you come back from it tomorrow? You'll be tomorrow's storyteller!"

"I will, Granny!" I felt relieved that I was able to make things up for her.

When I reached my hut, I took my yukata off and began to wash it clean – turning up in a prim and proper yukata would be basic courtesy and respect for the host of the event. Girls would usually tie up their hair whenever they wore yukatas – as my hair length barely reached the shoulders, I decided it was better to let it down instead. Unknowingly, I spent my entire day inside my hut making preparations for tomorrow's evening. I double-checked that the sand colored yukata would be dry enough to be worn on the next day; I even sniffed at it thrice so that there was no weird odor. I ensured that the hair strands would not stick out in a frizzy manner; then I would dance around the wooden flooring and hop back to my reflection in the mirror– and I will smile at it like a silly child.

_What is making me so excited over?_

I asked questions in my head. How does a festival feel like in Rukongai? What do the people do? What are fireworks? _What would he..._  
I stopped before I thought it out aloud; I rephrased my question.

_What would everyone wear?_

I shook away the weird thoughts I had in my head – I had looked forward to tomorrow because it's a festival; because everyone would be smiling there.

_That's right. I loved to see people smiling.  
It is better than any scenery out there.  
Seeing someone smiling out from their heart  
makes you feel warm and fuzzy._

When night fell, I felt a little uneasy. I would look out at the window and wished sunrise would come a little sooner than any other days. It was very difficult to shut both eyes for a long time; they will open up after a few minutes to check on the window. I repeated this over and over again before I finally tire myself to sleep.

I jumped out from my slumber when I felt the sun shining on my face – it's the next day! It was not too long before I met the first problem of the day – how would I know when would be the right time to arrive at the venue? I took out the map and flipped over to the other side; it wrote "Wait here, 5.30 pm". When the meeting time was known, the second problem of the day popped out – I could not tell the time without the presence of the clock.

I don't have a clock, neither does Granny.

We simply tell time by looking at the color of the sky. Time was not represented in numerical terms, but rather, by words – dawn, morning, noon, afternoon, evening, night, midnight. What time does 5.30pm mean? I panicked at this problem, and ran towards Granny's house.

"Granny! Granny!" I knocked on the door.

The frail woman walked slowly to the window to peep at who the visitor was.

"Ah~ it's you. What happened? You look pale,"

"I need to ask you questions!"

Granny was taken aback at my anxiety.  
"What time is 5.30pm? Is it now? Am I too late for the event?" I asked, my voice shaking. I thought I had missed the event.

"What event is it?"

"Fire...works Festival,"

"Silly child. Fireworks are meant for the night sky. 5.30pm probably meant somewhere before sunset," Granny smiled wearily – I guess she was sleeping when I knocked at the door.

"Thanks! I'm sorry to have disturbed your sleep."

5.30pm meant the period of time before the sun goes down.  
I looked at the sky – it had just turned faint blue – there was still a long time before the sun would go down.

_You know what I did next? I spoke to the sun._

"Can you work faster, Mr. Sun? Please take the day off!" I said out loud to the yellow ball of light.  
What on earth am I doing?  
I laughed to myself.  
I was almost sure if there were villagers who heard me, they would be laughing too. Why am I doing such things today?

Perhaps it's because he always hides a surprise along with his own actions – and I want to know it. Is this how one should feel when they make friends about the same age? If that is so, I should really make more friends!

Time passed extremely slowly today. I even left for the venue early, somewhere when the sun tilted towards the afternoon hour. I ran my fingers along the route that was drawn out on the map – it seemed to be rather confusing at the end because I had to walk into the woods – trees looked awfully alike when they were placed side by side. I was thankful that I had actually left my hut early – I had to circle round the woods a couple of times; and the sun was slowly setting by the time I figured out the way out.

The sound of horses galloping could be heard from a distant.  
A woman was shouting out for my name.  
"Hisana? Where are you?"

"I'm here!" I had presumed that it was related to the event. The dark reddish brown wooden carriage pulled up in front of me within seconds. Everything seemed like a fairytale scene– from the horses to the princess stepping out of the carriage.

"Hello Hisana," The lady was dressed in an intricately designed deep orange yukata; sunbirds made from golden threads were pictured to be flying amongst the spider lilies. She had dark colored hair that was clipped into a ponytail by a hairpin. The woman's skin shone like sparkling bronze fragments when the setting sun reflected its light onto her.

"Nice to meet you," I took a bow. Looking up, the woman was grinning cheekily. It was our first meeting, yet she smiled as if we have known each other.

"Have we met before?"

"Of course we have. I even stood outside your house talking to you, remember?"  
How come it seemed to me that I do not have the slightest clue talking to this person?

"Did...we?"

"Oya~ it's me, Yoruichi," She said it in the same tone as that talking black cat.

"So was it you hiding behind the black cat, doing all the talking?"

"That black cat is me,"

"So Yoruichi-san can turn into a black cat?"

"Yep,"

"That sounds like magic!" I wondered how it was possible to turn from a human to a cat – Yoruichi-san is like a true magician.

"It sure is. Hop on the carriage."

"Yoru...Yoruichi-san? You are really beautiful today,"

"Hahaha!" The raven-haired beauty laughed. "Wait till you see the one inside." She pointed to the window of the carriage. I took her hand and bent down a little as I entered the door. There was a cold but ravishing beauty seated at the corner, looking out at the window with eyes that had lost patience. This beautiful existence noticed my entrance, and continued to gaze out of the window, cross-legged and arms folded.

"Nice to meet you," I took a tiny bow. What an enchanting sight, I thought to myself as I saw the yukata this beautiful person was donning – dark purplish with silver bamboo shoots that seemed like they had sprouted from the ankles.

"It's me," That person shifted his eyes onto me._  
It's that grumpy prince!_

"It's true, Yoruichi-san," I giggled.

"Right? I told you, he's prettier," Yoruichi-san laughed out louder this time.

When I tried to look up at his eyes, the carriage took off and I bumped my head loudly against the wall. I saw his right hand trying to reach out for me, but it was too late. Yoruichi-san kept laughing and slapping the seats with her left hand; as she rubbed the back of my head gently.

"I thought he was..." I was gazing at the dark purple yukata.

"A girl, right," That boy sighed out, as if he was thinking "until when will she get it right?"

I looked down apologetically._  
I wondered, if he's always so unhappy about everything,_

_Will I ever get to see him smile?_

"Wow, Byakuya-go. It seems like you have telepathy!" Yoruichi-san jeered. His name is Byakuya? It was my first time hearing that name – it sounded very uncommon. As he wasn't the one to introduce his name to me, I did not go around calling him "Byakuya" - I tried to strike conversations without having to call his name.

Byakuya stood up and tried to pull out Yoruichi-san's hairpin, but she had successfully dodged it. It was a hilarious scene because Byakuya wouldn't give up and Yoruichi-san was very nimble with deflecting his attacks – it made the carriage rock harder than it already had. I laughed out uncontrollably and the both of them stopped; they took a glance at one another before Yoruichi-san smiled at me – it was as if they wanted me to be happy about today's event too.

The carriage stopped after traveling quite a distance. Yoruichi-san was so excited that she took my hand and push me into this room where there were 5 chambermaids waiting inside. They began to take my measurements and discuss what would be the best yukata pattern for me.

"It's okay I can just take a plain blue one..." I went over to the right and picked up the first one I see.

"No. You suit the color pink,"One of the senior maids commented and she demanded the rest to start searching for pink-colored yukatas. There were many patterns, but I particularly loved this one – the one with reddish plum and cherry blossoms.

"This one is pretty," I blushed at the design.

"One should look happy when she wears a yukata," said the senior maid.

"Can I wear this?" I asked.

"Yoruichi-sama said it's yours," one of the younger ones smiled at me. Even when I refused the offer, they insisted that I should just accept the kind favor.

"You have to fit in these clogs too," I was presented a pair of wooden slip-in clogs. I had not been wearing shoes since the first day I had resided in Rukongai – not only were they costly, they looked pretty hard to walk on. I tripped quite a couple of times due to the wooden pieces supporting the sole – if I rely too much on my heel to walk, I'll look like I'm about to fall down; if I rely too much on the front part, the clogs will tip over, causing another fall. As I wobbled my way out of the door, I saw two expressions – one was gleaming, the other was astonished. _What had happened?_

"Hisana!" Yoruichi-san went up the stairs and led me down the stairs.

"You look extremely adorable with this yukata," She grinned. "Don't you think so, Byakuya-go?" Yoruichi-san looked over at Byakuya, who turned his eyes to the floor.

"Ah...yeah," He lowered his head.

Yoruichi-san whispered to me, "See, he's shy. You are that pretty."

"Is it true?" I asked with my face flushed in pink.

"It's as if this piece of yukata was tailor-made for you," Yoruichi-san remarked.

"I have your beautiful yukata to thank for. Thank you, Yoruichi-san." I held her hand and smiled. She had turned me into someone I probably won't even recognize, just for this special day. When I saw Yoruichi-san smiling back at me, I knew that feeling.

_She, too, was smiling from her heart._

I guess it was due to Yoruichi-san's friendliness that made me closer to her. We held hands and made our way to the jetty; and she would always catch me in time whenever I tripped over. In order to reduce the frequency of falling down, I walked extremely slowly with those wooden clogs. Byakuya's footsteps would always be heard in the background, the clogs he wore would amplify those tiny steps he took.

As the sky turned from orange to dark blue, we reached the jetty. There was a man waiting for the three of us. He was tall and had light blonde hair; his yukata was milky beige in color decorated with random dark gray vertical stripes. He opened up a wooden umbrella which revealed its black swallow patterns, and took a tiny spin.

"Welcome~ to the Fireworks Festival," he said with a light and fluffy tone.

"Kisuke, I'd like you to meet Hisana, my friend," Yoruichi-san gave my shoulders a little push.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Urahara Kisuke," The man took a bow.

"I'm Hisana." I said softly.

"She's pretty. Can I take her to the..." Urahara-san asked.

"No. She's not yours. She's mine," Yoruichi-san retorted.

"Haha," Urahara-san laughed bitterly. "That's not fair, Yoruichi-san. You take all the good things to yourself." He let out a sigh.

"This way, please," Urahara-san stretched out his hand as he led us to the boat. As he rowed the boat out to the lake, I looked at the reflection of the moon on the surface of the still water. It appeared to be a little different even when I gaze at it every night when I reach home. There were sounds of the cicadas buzzing amongst the woods and the occasional 'plop' sound when Urahara-san's paddle hits the water.

"This... was how humans celebrated Fireworks Festival," Urahara-san explained as he rowed the boat into rows of dimly-lit red and yellow lanterns. It was a stunning scene for the lanterns seemed to be floating on the water surface; yet being able to maintain unaffected by the ripples. Humans have such lovely festivals to spend their day with – they must have been really happy during such festivals. Why can't Rukongai have something like this too? I'm sure everyone would enjoy such events. Did I enjoy this much when I was living in the human world?

Urahara-san helped us down the boat when we reached a tiny island next to the lanterns. "This is where the magic begins," he smiled at us. When I heard that word 'magic', I had actually wanted to run towards the destination; but my clogs would not allow me to. For some reason, the clogs got a little easier to walk right now – if my toes grip onto the fabric thong hard enough. It was then I knew everyone wanted to know what that 'magic' was; for Yoruichi-san dashed way ahead of us, leaving behind a small gust of wind.

"Hurry! Come and see this! This is so beautiful!" I could hear her exclaim from afar. Urahara-san let out a relieved smile, "At least she loved it," he whispered to himself. I turned back and saw Urahara-san who looked over with his curious eyes, "Don't you want to see that too?" A thought just went past me – it was as if this festival was meant for Yoruichi-san only. Perhaps, Urahara-san brought back this memory he had of the real world for Yoruichi-san to experience – so that she would share the same feeling together. I looked at what was ahead of me; I saw Byakuya's dark purple yukata.

In that case, I should make Byakuya, the grumpy and hot-headed prince, smile too!

I tried to run towards Yoruichi-san's direction as fast as I could, but the clogs were hindering my speed and they were making me trip over the tiny twigs that lay across the woods. Still, I tried hard to overtake Byakuya so that I could convey the message to him. When I finally succeeded, I asked the boy, with my right hand reached out to him.

"Won't you want to see it together?"  
I smiled at his astonished expression again. He stopped there, staring at my face.

"What's wrong?"  
I asked but he did not reply me.

"Why...?"He muttered, out of the blue.

"For happiness is something that only can be felt if it's shared between two or more people." I replied, unsure if that was what he wanted to know.

The odd and haughty prince fell silent and gave me his hand. I grabbed it by the fingers and continued running in the same direction. I could feel from his pale and bony fingers that he was excited too; he was just unwilling to let that feeling out of him, that's all. I kept running; and I would trip occasionally, but this time was different – he would offer his hand to help me up whenever I fall. I would thank him every time for that; because it certainly took him courage to offer his hand – something he has never done before to me.

Yoruichi-san waved to the two of us and pointed to the wooden stairs that was located at the left side of the lake. Not only was it decorated by the same red and yellow lanterns, there was red shrine standing tall at the top of those steps; and it glowed beautifully under the mysterious lighting. We were standing on this huge piece of land that overlooked the lake. This place was breathtakingly stunning.

Yoruichi-san tugged Urahara-san's yukata and asked excitedly, "Kisuke! Are there any more surprises? What are we supposed to do now for the festival?" I was smiling at her, she seemed like a child in front of Urahara-san – it was really adorable to see this side of Yoruichi-san.

"Yoruichi-san, the show hasn't even started," Urahara-san assured her that there were more surprises.

"Sit here and enjoy," He led the three of us on the wooden benches that faced the lake. I sat in between Yoruichi-san and Byakuya, while Urahara-san went over to flip a yellow switch.

"Inhale deeply. Be very careful for..." He warned aloud.

_What you are about to witness, they might leave you gasping for air._

There was a moment of silence when Urahara-san pressed the switch. The lake was hauntingly charming on its own, with a silver moon radiating its gentleness in my eyes. There would be a soft breeze that would blow past my face while I kept my eyes fixed on the sky – Granny said that fireworks were meant for the night sky. The magic happened in a blink of eye as the water surface glowed.

_Urahara-san was a magician too._

The sky burst into different shades of red, yellow, green, blue, violet and pink. They were like huge flowers that lit up the dark sky, before they disappear into the form of smoke. There were gold ones that resembled like tiny little stars, leaving behind a trail of shimmering dust. I loved those the most, and I would always ask Urahara-san if he had anymore of those because I wanted to see them badly – they increase the number of stars in the sky. Whenever he answered those requests, I would thank him gratefully. Yoruichi-san would hug me whenever she sees the brighter colored fireworks; then she'll cheer for every single one – I thought that would make the event more interesting so I followed suit. Every time Yoruichi-san thanked Urahara-san, I would see him smiling to himself.

"Yoruichi-san, this is for you," Urahara-san shouted to the three of us.

"What?" She couldn't hear it very clearly because of the loud explosions given off by the fireworks.

"He said the next fireworks are for you," I whispered into her ears.

We looked into the sky, waiting impatiently for what Urahara-san had prepared specially for Yoruichi-san. When the streak of silver light shot up into the sky, it transformed into a huge cat face that covered the moon. Both of us laughed uncontrollably at that face and Yoruichi-san scolded Urahara-san for making fun of her – Urahara-san laughed heartily at her comments.

_When you are with someone precious, be it a friend or a lover,  
Happiness spreads like a fire and it explodes brilliantly like fireworks.  
_

"These are Sparklers. I had improvised them to last longer," Urahara-san pulled a huge box out after the fireworks display ended. There were heaps of silver-wrapped sticks jutting out of the boxes. Urahara-san bent over and lighted a fire with the twigs that had piled over at the corner. What are these? I had not seen such inventions before. Byakuya walked up to the box and studied the sticks closely. The two of us were left alone to play with the sticks because Urahara-san wanted to give Yoruichi-san a mini-tour round the island. I felt awkward being stuck with someone I couldn't be close with. Perhaps, I should take the initiative to strike a conversation with the proud boy.

"How...How do we play this?" I asked nervously as I reached out for the sticks in the box. It was then Byakuya thought for a while before he spoke out.

"Sparklers. He just lighted that small fire. I guess they will need this," He placed the silver stick on the burning twigs. Nothing happened at first, so I went closer and noticed the stick was glowing orange. There was a slight shrilling sound and I found hard to describe what I saw after that.

_Stars were falling out from the stick and disappear upon hitting the ground.  
Bright orange stars that danced in a vertical pattern._

"What is this? Is this magic? You know magic too?" My eyes found it hard to leave the sparkler; it was such a mesmerizing sight. He kept very quiet as he stared intently at the burning stick, as if he was trying to ask me to do the same too.

_When I bent down and shared the same scenery with him,  
I tried to make a comparison. Which was the better scenery?  
His hypnotized look at the sparklers; or those tiny orange stars?  
Those eyes looked so pretty with the stars glimmering in them._

Byakuya would exclaim softly whenever the stick finished burning; then he'll stand up and take out another one. The cycle kept repeating and I would smile every time a different color came out of those sparklers.

_We would sigh when the sparkler finished burning._  
"_The magic hasn't ended", we would hint at one another.  
Then, when the new one gets ignited, we would start smiling again._

Sometimes, Byakuya would give out a melancholy expression when he looked at the sparkler. I did not want to see those eyes – today is a joyous event – everyone should be happy. I stood up and ran to the box, pulling out two longer sticks and lighted them up. Byakuya stared at my sudden movement but he was unable to anticipate what I wanted to do with them – I wanted to cheer him up. As the sparklers began to burn, I poured the sparks on his head.

"Look! It's raining stars now!"

"Ouch! You! It hurts!" Byakuya stood up immediately and started to dodge the sparks.

_Do you know why they hurt?  
That's because you have those sad eyes on you – the sparklers don't like to see you like that.  
They will sting you every time you show that expression._

I laughed loudly when he stopped showing those eyes. Byakuya became very angry and started chasing me; he could run very fast and I would be caught in no time. He would grin and do the same thing to me. The sparks hurt a lot, but it was definitely more fun running around in them than to observe his sad expression. I only had a simple wish - I wanted him to be able to feel the happiness that is drifting in the air.

_It was a rare expression, but I heard him chuckle when I fell over to the ground.  
He ran up with that concerned look._

"Are you okay?" Byakuya asked.

"I'm okay," I grinned at him.

"Don't run around knowing you can't walk on those clogs,"

"As long as you are smiling, I don't care," I blurted out._  
_He had a surprised look.  
Even when he did not offer to help me up, just like how we had first met, it did not matter much to me anymore.  
_Happiness turns me into a silly and willful child._

"Did you enjoy yourself?" I looked up into his eyes.

"... Not really," He hesitated and his fringe covered those eyes.

"Liar," I giggled.  
I stood up and fitted on the clogs again.  
There was another place that I wanted to visit.

"Can we go up to that shrine?"

"The one at the top?"

"Yes. I want to make wishes. Shall we go?"

Byakuya hesitated again, and then he reached out his left hand.

"Okay. Let's go."

"Thank you. You are a very kind person," I took the hand and started walking with him.

"By the way, I...I'm just returning the favor!" He replied grumpily.

"You can choose not to take it if you don't want it," He continued.

I gripped tighter, "If I fall, I will let go."

"You won't." He assured me with a sinister grin. "I won't allow myself to fail at such trivial matters."

We closed our eyes and made wishes at the shrine._  
What did you wish for?_  
I wondered if I made a foolish wish - I had wished for the happiness of everyone here.  
I could have made a wish for myself; but I felt it would be more appropriate for me to return the kind favor these people had offered me with.

I took a glance at the shrine before I left the island.  
I made an extra wish; it revolved around that boy.

_If he hadn't said goodbye, we would eventually meet again under the same sky._

I stepped out of the carriage and thanked everyone for the wonderful evening.  
"Thank you for the magical moment. I hope we get to do such things like that again," I bowed and walked back home.  
Only Yoruichi-san and Urahara-san said goodbye to me.

He said "We will do it, if we have the chance to."

Looks like he did not want to say goodbye too.

_Did my wish come true?  
I think it did.

* * *

_**yu-pon's note:  
**Done! Thank you for reading!

Hisana called Byakuya by his name because she hasn't known that he was a noble family member.  
thought i should at least point this out fufu.

Chapter 6, will take place a few years later.. XDD  
When Byakuya gets his Shikai. (yay)  
I haven't thought of how they will meet again~  
(think think think!)

Thank you for the reviews too! I really appreciate them! Keeps reminding me to work harder~

I hope to see everyone in 6 okay~  
ほなおつー


	6. 六 Senkei : Byakuya

**Cherry Petals ~****サクランボノハナビラ~  
****

* * *

**mini-reminder: This chapter... has very very little Byakuya x Hisana. It's more on...Byakuya x.... someone. haha.**  


* * *

**

6. **殲景 ****~白哉** **~ ( ****Senkei****~Byakuya~)**

"_Why didn't you just kill me with it?"  
She stood astonished at what was lying in front of her._

"_Why did you betray us?"  
My eyes were watching her olive gray cape that was draping over her shoulders._

_Best friends don't lie to one another._

"_If you do this, Seireitei will..."  
Her eyes were slightly wet._

"_Go. Don't make me see you again,"_

_I faced away from her and ran in the opposite direction._

_That was how best friends said goodbye, in the least painful way._

"If you don't know the name of your zanpakutou, you can't become a Lieutenant of the 6th Division. Let alone to assist Ginrei-sama," were the words that came out from a close relative of mine.

Every Shinigami in Soul Society possesses a Zanpakutou, a long and sharp blade concealed beneath a scabbard made of wood. Each Zanpakutou has a name of its own and its true form is usually an entity that only the user can see – a soul living within it. As the Shinigami progresses with his skills and abilities, he would be able to establish a better rapport with the sword – it will eventually lead to a Bankai, the basic requirement for one to become a Captain of the Gotei 13. The sword is like an invisible friend - the better your relationship with it, the stronger you will become.

I was not an official seat member of the 6th Division then, for Grandpa would not grant me permission to until I learn how to release the zanpakutou. Even when I was very proficient with Kido and could take out Hollows easily with those spells, it was still not enough, under Grandpa strict standards. It felt like I would only be able to gain some recognition from Grandpa when I finally grasp the true name of my zanpakutou.

It occurred that hot and stifling afternoon when I slipped into a daydream while I waited for Yoruichi-san.

In that dream that I had, I sitting on a bench looking at a huge forest of cherry blossoms trees.  
A beautiful young lady walked gently towards me with her eyes blindfolded. She was clad in a kimono that had shades of red, pink and white blending harmoniously with the flower prints on it, the length of the sleeves were so long that it extended to her ankles. Her hair was long and straight, and it was dark brownish under the faint sunlight streaming in. She had extremely fair complexion and her cheeks with slightly pink in colour. As she sat beside me, she asked me a question with her red lips, while her eyes were still wrapped in pale pinkish cloth.

"Do you want to make a pact with me?"

I was so dazzled by her charm that I forgot I knew how to speak. She would smile a little and repeat the same question, this time she made it softer.

"Who... are you?" I asked.  
"When time comes, you'll know."  
"Then... Where am I?"

"You should know the answer yourself,"

The elegant lady kept beating around the bush with her replies. Every single time she saw my frustrated face, she would chuckle gently. She would repeat her question once I fell silent.

"What pact are you talking?"

"Hmm... For example, the key to securing a Lieutenant seat of course," The lady smiled as she pointed out.

_How did she even know about this matter? Was she eavesdropping back then?_

"Ah... I wasn't eavesdropping. I would attract a lot of attention in this manner, won't I?" She giggled as the startled look remained plastered on my face. This woman could even read my thoughts.

_What on earth are you?_

"I can't tell you who I am, because I'm never allowed to. You have to find it out yourself," She sighed out as she answered my thoughts, once more.

Somehow I liked the way her voice sounded, gentle and soothing. It was not too high-pitched like a child and her last few syllables that she pronounced seemed like they were fluttering in the air.

"So...Do you want to make a pact with me?"She repeated the question again.

It was then I woke up from that bizarre dream. I had assumed that she must have been an evil spirit – one that would tempt souls into forming pacts with her, to her own advantages. Moreover, such ominous beings would usually appear as a very enchanting figure so as to lure their prey into the trap. In addition to that point, she had a blindfold on – spirits from the folklores I was taught tend to have this particular physical appearance.

It is always better to watch out for such dangerous beings.

"Byakuya-go!" Shihouin Yoruichi flash-stepped over the rooftop and flicked my forehead with her fingers. The slight sting on my skin made me realized that I was back to reality.

"What are you doing staring in space?" She asked curiously.

"Do you believe in evil spirits?"

"I do, they are all in Hueco Mundo aren't they?" Yoruichi-san scratched her head with a puzzled look.

She just made total sense with her reply. Aren't Shinigamis in charge of sending the evil spirits back to Hueco Mundo? If so, there should not be any evil spirit left in Rukongai – which leaves me another question left to tackle – _what on earth did I just encounter?_

"I met a ghost just now, Yoruichi-san," I tugged at her Captain's haori.

"You did? Show me! Where?" Yoruichi-san's eyes had grown large in astonishment.

"I don't know. She appeared in a blindfold and she was a very beautiful senior woman," I began to fill Yoruichi-san with details.

"Oh no, Byakuya-go... She might be you're..."

"My what, Yoruichi-san?" That woman tends to blow things up sometimes.

"Your secret admirer! Haha!" Yoruichi-san burst out into laughter and she clutched her waist.

"What!?" I ran up and pulled the cheeks of the 2nd Division Captain as her deafening laughter echoed across the wooden pillars.

" Okay! Okay! I surrender! I think she's most likely your...." Yoruichi-san calmed down and pointed at my blade.

"Why is she a lady then?" I protested. I had always thought the souls of the zanpakutou would take a form of an animal; even if it's a human form, it would be of the same gender as the user.

"Oh you think she would be weak because she's a lady?"

"Not really," I turned away.

"At least you knew how she looked like. Mine took the entity of a gust of wind – so whenever I'm talking to it, it responds by blowing his words into my ears. How saddening, I'll never know how it really looks like. He could have been a real good-looking man, for crying out loud!" Yoruichi-san looked up into the sky, with her lips pouted. Even if it might not been the truth, she used her own way to make me feel better.

Time seemed to be moving slower than usual. Yoruichi-san seemed to be talking as if each word took a minute to pronounce. As she tried to pronounce my name, time froze.

"Hello, boy," The kimono-clad ravishing woman appeared in my garden.

"So it's true? That you are my..." I took a glance at my zanpakutou. The lady nodded her head and smiled.  
Yoruichi-san, apparently did not notice the presence of the woman – she was not even moving.

"She can't see you?"

The lady shook her head and her brown hair swayed gently to the side. It was until today that I realized she had hairpins with tiny bells that hung at the ends clipped on her head.

"What a pity," I wanted everyone to be able to see how she looked like.

"But you can. So I won't feel so lonely anymore," She smiled under the white sun rays. Her red kimono looked like as if it was glistening under the sunlight; she had a faint aura that glowed around her.

"So have you thought about the pact?"

"How does it go about?"

"You have to grant me one wish; then I'll teach you one secret move to your quite complicated sword," She giggled mischievously.

"What is the wish?" I wanted to know more about the blade that I was wielding.

That lady whispered to my left ear,  
"I am looking for a person."

"What? That's it?" If she was looking for someone, Yoruichi-san is good at this – I can seek for her assistance. As I reached out towards her fading shadow, I could feel time regaining its former pace.

Yoruichi-san started speaking all of a sudden; she realized that my eyes were staring at the empty patch, my hands seemed like they were reaching out for someone.

"You saw her again?" Yoruichi-san understood what was going on, without me explaining to her what happened.

"She wants me to grant her a wish," I sighed.

"This is exciting!" Yoruichi-san peeked closer at me.

"She's looking for someone,"

"Let's go searching for him!" Yoruichi-san gave me a pat on the back and rushed out of the house.

I had been too keen to help out with granting that lady's wish that I had not noticed something was wrong with Yoruichi-san – I might have been able to stop her if I realized it earlier.

"I hope I can live long enough to see your Bankai, Byakuya-go," Yoruichi-san's eyes were gazing at the drifting white clouds.

"I make sure it's just a matter of a few years. Wait and see were-cat!" We were back to normal in seconds; and started the tag game again.

I spent days trying to figure out what that mysterious lady meant by "granting her wish"; I studied the physical appearance of the zanpakutou and withdrew it from its scabbard time to time – she looked like a normal blade to me. I could figure out one thing as the days went by – that the lady had a very gentle personality – she would appear almost every time to drop clues. It was then I realized I had unknowingly moved a step closer to understanding her.

We began to share longer conversations after a period of time; she even shared a bit of her past to me. The place we met would always be that bench under countless of cherry blossom trees. The petals would flutter down like snowflakes in a gradual motion.

"I want to see him. It sounds so foolish right, that a sword is looking for a person,"

"To an extent, yes." I agreed with her.

"That's right. We don't age, so I don't even know if he's alive or dead; yet this determination won't change," She smiled a little.

"Who is this guy?" I asked. This man must have meant a lot to this lady.

"I met him a long time ago. I was only a flower he adored in the woods. Flowers only bloom in spring; I would wither away before summer arrives. Even when he knew that truth, he visited me every day, rain or shine. Perhaps it was because of this man, spring had never been so beautiful before," The lady stroked the ends of her brown hair and smiled.

"How did he look like? Perhaps it would be easier for me to find him,"

"He was small-built and had a detectable reiatsu; an older man would always stand at a distance looking at him."

_Certain memories fade along with time.  
Some fade so silently that you thought you never had them.  
This is the reason why we share memories together.  
So that these people remember them for you._

As the lady began to recall her past by describing the landscapes in very vivid vocabulary, I felt like I had walked into her world – that I could witness the events happening in front of me. She talked about him only smiling when he saw the flowers; that when he turned his back to the older man – he would be showing a very sad look on his face. The happiest memory she had was that that guy had left behind a poem on the last day of spring – it was her final farewell gift.

"You should see the way he smiled at the sun," She stood up and faced the sun. Her dress shone brighter this time, it was dazzling. If she were to be a real person, she must have been a princess or a very renowned beauty. I have to take her to see this man.

I grabbed my zanpakutou and ran out of the house. I hadn't known how to start looking for him, but I knew it could only be someone with a pure heart. I would look around, while the lady will sense for the guy's reiatsu.

"If the guy has reiatsu, he would be in Seireitei!" I exclaimed at the sudden thought. I searched high and low for this person and I could almost sense the lady shaking her head every time I clarified with her. Almost every Shinigami was staring at the weird behaviour I had exhibited when I was finding that mystery man; I looked like I was talking to myself.

"I think he's no longer here. I can't even detect him near," She hung her head low.

"Don't give up so easily," I thought in my head, knowing that she will be able to hear it.

"Thank you," She would whisper softly and smile.

"Why not you take me to that place where you met him?" I made a suggestion.

I followed closely to the directions that were given to me. I thought she was playing a prank on me by leading me to a place I had been to - it was located northeast of the Kuchiki Manor, where the cherry blossom trees were. Grandpa had grown them so that the entire family would gather during spring to gaze at the flowers.

"You must be kidding," I muttered out when I stopped at the exact tree she had pointed.

I was panting away when I faced the green leaves.  
It was a memory that I had not wanted to remember – the departure of my parents.  
I had not grasped the concept of death then; so Grandpa told me a lie – he said they became cherry blossoms.  
I would then visit the flowers every single day until summer arrived – Grandpa had made saying goodbye a little less harder to accept.

_She was that flower I particularly loved – the pale pinkish tint with dark red inner petals.  
That lady wasn't able to detect that person anymore; because she became that spiritual pressure._

I looked at the blindfolded lady standing beside me and reached out for the cloth that was covering her eyes. As I untied the knot, she revealed her dark crimson irises; the same way the flower had looked like in the past. I understood the reason why she kept them covered – they were a reflection of my own eyes, in a different colour. If I looked away to the side, her eyes would be doing the same thing. If I were to be crying, tears will fall out from her eyes for no reason – the answer would be too obvious. She had wanted me to recall that part of the memory on my own.

As I recited the poem painfully, she gave me a tiny hug and a slight pat on the back of my head.  
Just seconds before I was about to reach the end, she whispered and placed her long finger at my lips,

"You also gave me a name, remember?"

_Both of us were tearing for different reasons._

"Senbonzakura," I finished the forgotten poem and found myself holding onto the zanpakutou. The long silver blade scattered into pale pink and tiny blades dancing in the air. As I placed my palm out, a few of the blades will fall gently on it – they did not cut me at all.

_An air of spring surrounded me, even when the trees were all green._

Her voice rang in the midst of the pink petals,  
"Time for your special move, Byakuya." She wanted to fulfill her promise.

"I don't need it now," I reminded her. There was no purpose to learn it now.

"When the time comes," We began to speak at the same time.

Senbonzakura would laugh away in my head; she too, understood what I had meant.

"You know something, Byakuya?" A swirl of petals touched my left wrist; it was like as if she was holding on my hand.

"I am very glad to have met and known you,"

"I'll make sure you'll see a different scenery this time, Senbonzakura," I closed my palm as the trees began to sway in the swirling wind of petals.

"Thank you," I heard her faint whisper.

I walked back to the Manor and took a closer look at my zanpakutou. Senbonzakura had changed in her physical appearance – she now had a pale lilac-blue window-like cross guard to hold onto the silver blade. At times, I would hear her whispering in my ears, reminding me that she is constantly listening to whatever I am thinking of. It was a secret bond I shared with my blade – I would usually let her in on certain decisions that I make; ignoring the fact that it was weird discussing matters with a sword. Senbonzakura was usually quiet until I called out her name; I guess she did not want to be much of a hindrance to me by prying into every single matter.

Years passed, I had assumed the post of Lieutenant and completed missions whenever Grandpa permitted. There were tough ones that required Senbonzakura's assistance – the random movements of the tiny blades made it hard for the opponent to determine its next move – Senbonzakura had with her an innate ability to trick its enemies.

With all these commitments at hand, I was not able to visit Yoruichi-san as much as I used to in the past; but I would always write to her to let her know that I had been well – she would always irritate me by signing off with her paw print. I had always taken it for granted that she would be there whenever I needed her. It was too late by the time I caught news of her escaping Soul Society with two other exiled captains.

"Things don't look too good, Lieutenant! Shihouin Yoruichi... she..." one of seated officers barged into the Manor and announced this piece of news to me.

"What did she do this time?" It was not too surprising that she had misbehaved in the Manor again.

"It's grave, Byakuya. She assisted the exiled captains to escape,"

"What? What is going on?" I realized that Grandpa and Yoruichi-san had kept me in the dark about the turmoil that was going on in Seireitei. She had requested for Grandpa to keep dispatching me out for missions so that I would know less about what was going on.

After knowing the truth, I dashed out of the Manor and attempted to hunt her down. She had not only betrayed the Gotei 13, I disliked the fact that she kept so many things from me. I knew how to look for Yoruichi-san even when she masked her reiatsu – she had a particular hideout near the 12th Division – she had made mention in one of her reply letters.

My entire mind was caught in a whirlpool of confusion. I had not known what I should say to Yoruichi-san when I see her. Should I yell and reprimand her? Or should I follow the rules that were instructed by the Hell Butterflies to take her out with my sword? What should I exactly do? Grandpa would always tell me to "follow my heart". When I look into my heart, what is it that I see?

A small part of it belonged to a sword called...

_Senbonzakura._

She believes things could be settled just by looking at one another face-to-face and kept urging me to locate Yoruichi-san in the fastest time possible.

True enough, I knew it the moment I saw Yoruichi-san.

She was preparing to leave with Urahara Kisuke and Tsukabishi Tessai, both captains that were sentenced to death by the Central 46 Chambers. Yoruichi-san whispered something to Urahara Kisuke and walked forward.

"You wish to tell her something?" Senbonzakura asked softly in my head.

I nodded slightly in return.

"Follow my instructions, okay?"

_I couldn't believe what I was hearing._  
"_Drop your sword vertically downwards" was the only instruction.  
Her crimson irises opened and we said the same things together, once more._

"_Bankai."_

As darkness swept through, she told me to, "Stop crying."  
Senbonzakura could even feel the tears flowing out from inside.  
I asked her "This is your new name?"  
She replied "This is my actual name."

_Senbonzakura Kageyoshi._

Pink swords encircled the entire area between the both of us; it formed into a huge barrier where no one else could see us.

"You really achieved Bankai, Byakuya-go," Yoruichi-san cried.

"I could leave with no regrets," She turned her back and tried to walk out of the dark dome.

"It's my Bankai remember, Yoruichi-san? You cannot escape until you answer me,"

"Oh, Byakuya-go has grown up!" Yoruichi-san seemed like she was back to normal for a few seconds.

"Shut up, Yoruichi-san," I muttered angrily at the lady in front of me.

"Why do you have to lie to me!" I yelled at her.

"I don't want you to get hurt. I don't want things to end up like this,"

_You are one big foolish cat._

"You weren't frank to me, that's why things are like this right now!" I had to reprimand her, after all.

Yoruichi-san had a startled expression on her face. She hadn't known the exact words to retaliate.  
"Naa~ Byakuya-go," Yoruichi-san sighed softly.

"What?"

"Now that you have successfully trapped me in your Bankai, why don't you just take away my life? You were under instructions to kill me right," She looked nonchalantly at me and waved with her right hand.

_That was not I had intended to do at all._

"Why did you betray us!?" I shouted across the dark space. I was looking at the olive gray cape that she was wearing; this came from the 6th Division – Grandpa had known she was leaving, so he gave her a souvenir.

"Sometimes the truth lies in something beyond what your eyes can capture," She exhaled slowly.

"Best friends... They don't lie to one another right?" I just wanted to clarify this with her.

"Yeah," She winked at me.

"We are best friends right?"

"Of course we are," She flashed a grin and showed me a thumbs up. "For life, Byakuya."

All I had wanted to hear from Yoruichi-san was that – we would not lie to one another. She must have her reasons for running away from Seireitei; and helping those two captains to escape; she believed that she had not done anything wrong. As a good friend of hers, I should trust her too.

"Go, Yoruichi-san," I looked to the side as I gripped my kimono.

"Byakuya-go?"

"I'll pretend that I lost control of my Bankai and set you free carelessly," I explained to her.

"Leave and don't ever come back, Yoruichi-san." I saw tears welling up in her eyes as she mouthed out the words "Goodbye, Byakuya-go."

Letting Yoruichi-san do what she had already placed her mind to perform would be the most ideal resolution I could offer as her best friend.

_That was how best friends said goodbye, in the least painful way._  
What a good liar I was.

There were times where my heart felt like it lost the will to live – this was one of them.  
I lost a friend where I used to show another side of me; and trusted her with my life.  
If those words that came out from her mouth did not hurt, I wonder what else could have done damage to me then.  
My chest felt like it had been pounded by a bed of sharp nails; blood seeped out of the heart in pain.

_Even when I saw you again in Seireitei,  
I was still unable to bring myself to take your life.  
Not even Senbonzakura wanted that._

_That was how important you were, Yoruichi-san._

I ran in the opposite direction as fast as my legs could take me. Senbonzakura followed close behind in her Shikai – a thousand of dancing cherry-coloured petals. I was not even aware where I was going; I just ran straight and dodged whatever that was in the way. The sceneries past through my eyes like a swirl of blended colors.

As I fell hard onto the ground, I realized the tears were falling uncontrollably. The colour of the ground looked like it had just rained violently on that tiny spot.I could sense someone walking towards me; but I did not know it was you.

"Sir, are you okay?" A young woman of petite build asked in concern as she helped me up.

I could not even say a word to this lady; the tears were still flowing out of my eyes like a river. The images in front of me were turning fuzzy and I had problems focusing at the lady.

The last thing I saw was a deep purple yukata – the flower prints had reminded me of a childhood memory – a girl named...

When one is at a desperate state, one tends to mouth very incoherent things.

"Hisana?"

Everything turned black.

花乱れ

想いに乗せて

千本桜

_The swirling of the flowers  
rides onto the memories  
Senbonzakura (A thousand petals of cherry blossoms)_

* * *

**yu-pon's notes:  
**Chapter 6! after x days hahaha.  
I re-wrote this chapter like 3 times. T__To  
Unfortunately, it's a... Byakuya/Yoruichi chapter again (but look at the end, there's a faint hint!)

I _even _attempted a haiku for Senbonzakura and Byakuya.  
It's in Japanese but I did a rough translation - I might have done it wrongly though.  
(it's really my first time writing one so...do not expect too much haha)  
It was the _poem_ Byakuya recited; actually he was thinking of his parents when he wrote that - sort of.  
That's why both teared for different reasons - Senbonzakura for finding the guy; Byakuya for remembering that loss.

If you noticed, Byakuya chapters are more on plots; Hisana chapters are the lovey bits~ thought I should note that down too~

Chapter 7! Hisana! hahahaha (hugs Hisana)

See ya guys soon!  
ほなおつー


	7. 七 The Sleeping Fairy : Hisana

**Cherry Petals ~****サクランボノハナビラ**

**眠り妖精**** ~緋真****~ (The Sleeping Fairy~Hisana~)**

In a place that was ridden of its humanity,  
I suppose today must have been a very lucky day for me.  
I saw a gentle glow on someone who probably descended from the heavens.  
There were no wings on his back, but thousands of pink petals trailed behind him.  
It was such a beautiful sight.

As I stood in front of this mesmerising creature, I thought that this must be a fairy from another realm.  
The eyes on the fairy's face were crying – they never looked more melancholy and lost.  
Did this fairy lose his way back home?  
Why are you showing such a sad face?  
Why do you look like you are suffering?

Back then, I wondered if I was being a bad person with ulterior motives.  
While I definitely wanted to help this person, I was thinking that I could spend some more time if I did that. I can't help myself for reacting in this manner – Rukongai was such a dark place to live in. I probably just want to find a way to escape from its clutches by hanging myself onto a silver lining.

"Are...Are you alright?" I approached closer to the fairy, my voice still trembling with nervousness.

Those dazed eyes seemed to be reacting a little to my question, but it went back into a daydream-like state soon after. His hands were reaching out front, as if he was asking me to walk over.

Why did I walk over without acknowledging the fact that we were complete strangers?  
Why did it seem so normal for me to do that?

The fairy staggered a few more steps ahead of him and fell to the ground. More tears were falling out this time. The tears were probably blinding his sight of me, so he wasn't aware that I was standing next to him.

"Are you really okay?" I tried to help him up by supporting his body weight onto mine. Strange enough, he wasn't retaliating at all. I was used to people rejecting favours in Rukongai that I couldn't react properly to this behavioural change. The flower petals that were swirling around him were so pretty – if I had stared at them long enough, I probably would get sucked into them.

"Hisa...na?" His voice sent me back to reality.  
How did he even know my name?  
I was so sure that he was a fairy, no other person would know of this name.

"I...!" I think I might have been too anxious that I squeezed his hand too tightly that...

He...passed out.

It's definitely my lucky day today for chancing upon a fairy from the heavens.  
I'll try my best to remember this day for the rest of my life.  
That way, I'll have another memory worth keeping throughout the days in Rukongai.

More often than not, I do not pay much attention to the things around me – I probably took all of them for granted. I noticed that the trees that loomed over us had three different shades of green; that the barks were dark-brownish in color. The path was filled with cracks and had tiny chipped rock fragments lying in a disorderly scattered manner. I also saw our shadows casted right in front of me, my shadow in particular – it was like displaying a side I did not want to see at all. The shadow was so dark, just like my heartless self when I did those things to my sister. Why am I feeling this way all of a sudden?

I never knew about the reason behind it, until a few years later.

The road back home today felt peaceful, despite the stranger's weight on my back and the guilt I've always lived with. Was the weather hot today? Somehow, I felt like I was walking through a desert under the warm morning sun. It took me sometime before I realised the heat was coming from the fairy. There was a breathing sound exhaling out more heat to my ears, and my breaths gradually synchronised with his. It was so amazing, what the fairy can do to me in such a short time with his enchanting spells. It might be due to his magical spells, I was able to feel the occasional breeze blowing past my cheeks. I could hear the mynah chirping on a tree branch before it took off; I could see the ants busy crawling back to their nest. They were things that have been there every single day, but I never saw how they had silently worked to keep the ecosystem in balance.

_Someday,  
I too, want to be someone like this._

The door of my house opened with a slight creak, as usual. I hurriedly laid out the only futon I had picked up from the junkyard (and thoroughly washed) so that the fairy has somewhere to rest on. As if it was a matter of fact to do so, I placed a wet towel on his forehead in an attempt to bring down his body temperature. When the towel became warm again, I changed it and did so continuously until the sun showed signs of setting. Time passed by so quickly without even me realising that my stomach had been growling for hours.

The mixture of rice and water bubbled in the claypot; I sprinkled a dash of salt in case it gets too bland to swallow. From time to time, I would take small peeks at his sleeping face. Peaceful wasn't the exact word to describe it, for he was frowning and knitting his eyebrows sometimes. It's embarrassing to put it in actual words how it felt at that time to be observing how fair his skin would look under the glow of the nearby lamp.

I like when his eyes are closed for a few reasons.  
It shows how long those eyelashes were.  
I get curious over things like the color of his eyes or the language he might be speaking.  
I would wonder the look on his face when he smiles or frowns. It keeps me wondering.  
When my mind does certain things like this, time flows a lot faster than usual.

Porridge was the best I could offer to a seemingly sick person. I made it watery enough to drink it down such that he does not even need to chew. The only thing I was worried about was that he wouldn't be conscious enough to eat it. I've never tried feeding an unconscious person so I was very nervous about it. I held his head and supported it with my left arm, while the spoon was trembling away at my right hand. It was a lot of talking to him before he actually swallowed the spoonful down – my message went through I suppose.

_It's okay.  
It's okay even if I don't know what happened.  
You are here, and I'm here too.  
I'll watch over you.  
You are safe here._

_I think you can hear me even when your eyes are closed.  
I made you something to eat.  
It may taste awful, but you have to eat something to get better.  
Fairies have to eat too, right?_

It was assuring to see him eat at least half a bowl of the porridge before he stopped opening his mouth. I supposed that meant he fell asleep. I changed the towel on his head and finished up the remaining half of porridge I made for him. By the time I washed all the utensils, it was already late into the night. There was no space left of the tiny futon, so I slept on the hard wooden floor beside him – it did not felt hard at all – I must have been really tired that day.

I took one final glance at his face before I closed my eyes.  
His nose looked sharp and distinct from the angle I was gazing.  
I was beginning to think that all of this was just a dream. A really sweet dream.  
I would wake up tomorrow, and find myself back in the futon, then the sun rays would pour in and it would be blinding. I would sit up and smile to my own vivid imagination.

"Yoruichi...san," he breathed out those words weakly and the tears were falling again.

I think I might have heard this name somewhere, it gives off a warm and fuzzy feeling.  
Instinctively, I held his hand.

_You'll be fine, because all of this comes from my head.  
It's just a momentary glimpse of a nightmare.  
Hush now, and I'll turn all of this into a nice dream with this hand of mine.  
So, I wish you a good night, my sleeping fairy._

_

* * *

_

**yu-pon's notes:**

I'm back on writing this! Hope that makes someone glad.  
It's been a year I suppose? I'm sorry to keep everyone waiting.  
Although this is short, I hope it's a sign that it's starting. XDD  
I have a penchant for reporting time - haha it's 4 am now (wow).

I can't wait to write the next chapter; but that will have to come after I can think of what to write.

I used the word futon here.  
It's a Japanese mattress, except that it's thinner and all - there is always google if you want to know more! hoho

Oh! Thank you for the reviews, really! m(_ _)m  
This chapter wouldn't even be born if I did not went through them again and again haha.

That's about it!  
See ya... in the next chapter!

yu-pon deshita~


	8. 八 The Poor Assassin : Byakuya

**Cherry Petals ****~サクランボノハナビラ~**

**貧乏な暗殺者 ****~白哉****~ (The Poor Assassin ~Byakuya~)**

_Dreams are usually incoherent and nonsensical.  
__They do not explain why things happen in a certain manner, nor do they try to make sense.  
__They are wild things you have no control over.  
__So, tell me the truth._

_Look into my eyes and tell me.  
I won't be mad at you, really.  
Tell me that I would eventually wake up._

I guess it all happened too quickly. I wasn't even able to figure out how I managed to react in such a defensive manner the moment I opened my eyes. I flashed her a hostile look when she asked me if I was already feeling better; I hit her hand hard when she tried to reach out for my clothes; I yelled at her when she gave me something to eat. I didn't know what to do. I didn't like the way she approached me – I rather if she just left me alone to do whatever I should do.

The girl was pale-skinned and had slight gray rings under her eye as if she had not received enough sleep the night before. Her hair was straight and unkempt – she probably didn't have a comb to maintain a neater hairstyle. The light violet yukata she was wearing had morning glory patterns at the sides of her waist, accompanied by a pastel yellow-colored sash. She had very sharp and thin facial features; some parts of her face were not easily visible as they were concealed under her long, dark-colored fringe.

"I'll," She spoke again, this time a little less cheerful than her first few greetings.

"Don't talk to me. I don't even know you," I stared aimlessly at the scenery outside. It seemed like there were plenty of trees with really dark green leaves. The atmosphere felt like we were right in the middle of summer; the cicadas were chirping a common melody and the heat waves were penetrating the dilapidated hut mercilessly. All of these seemed a bit nostalgic, for a strange reason.

"I'll leave. I don't mean any harm but please eat something," She took a slight bow and went down the wooden steps in her clogs.

The hut was still filled with the cackling sounds coming from the burning of the firewood at the stoves. I wonder if I happen to have good hearing – I could hear birds flapping their wings as they depart their nest in search for food. It was perfectly logical to behave that way towards a stranger, isn't it? She might be an assassin hired by our envious distant relatives to get rid of the sole Kuchiki heir, right?

_That's right, she must be an assassin sent down from those relatives who want the leader position all for themselves. Such incidents are common amongst families with high nobility; where the fight for power and foothold often led to gruesome bloodshed. Her innocent eyes, that shabby-looking yukata and this deserted rundown hut are all but a façade. This place, this entire scenery I am looking at, must have been some kind of preset plan to take my life._

_Then again, if she was really an assassin…_

_And if she really was an assassin like the usual ones I've heard from the Secret Ops…_  
_She would be lurking somewhere in those thick hedges, masking up her presence while she preys like a leopard. She would wait stealthily; savoring the moment I gobble up this bowl of runny porridge because I would be acting exactly as 'planned'. It must have been drugged so that I would be knocked unconscious and she could come back up here, tie me against the tree trunk and slit my throat with a hidden dagger in her sash._

There is something _strange_ about this 'assassin' though.

Why is it I can still detect her weak reiatsu hiding under the window?  
Why does she have to make it so obvious that she was peeping from the gaps of the wooden planks?  
Are her assassination skills that amateurish?  
Was she so terrible at performing something fundamental like camouflage?

I did the action of placing tiny spoonfuls of the porridge into my mouth when in actual fact I wasn't eating a single bit. I was luring her back into the hut in an attempt to rip her seemingly flawless bait into pieces. Even without looking at her directly in the eye, I could sense that she was smiling to herself as if her devious plan had worked.

_Wait till you see what I have in store for you, you despicable thing._

As her wooden clogs echoed across the hut, I planned my ambush quickly. I knew she had concealed my blade somewhere in the house and I wouldn't have time to locate it – I hid behind the door with a pair of chopsticks and held my breath. I happened to create a momentary illusion of myself still enjoying the runny porridge with my clothes, so that she would be distracted for a while.

"Excuse me, are you feeling…" She called out courteously at the illusion with a pair of concerned eyes.

I dashed towards her neck and grabbed it with my left hand before she could finish her sentence. The low-level assassin froze in terror and trembled as soon as she saw my other hand pointing the chopstick towards her neck.

"Who sent you here?" I hissed coldly at the thin frame.

"Heh? You? " The girl recognized my voice and felt puzzled because she was staring at the life-sized illusion I created a split second ago.

"Hurry! Speak!" I drove the chopstick closer to her neck and grabbed it tighter.

"I don't know? Some Shinigami I suppose?" She gave a vague answer. An assassin wouldn't give me such stupid replies. This is really some cheap and rookie assassin, I guess.

"Name?"

"They don't have names? They just send you down to Soul Society after you die, right?"

Something that she said wasn't making sense. In fact, she's too thin to be an assassin.

"What are you talking about?" I frowned impatiently as I waited for her response.

"Shinigami…" Her breathless voice came out weakly. I could see that the neck area was about to turn blue very soon – I loosen a little so that she can continue to reply my questions.

"No," I have to be more obvious with my sentences because she's too dim to understand what's going on.

"I'm asking you who hired you to kill me,"

"Oh, haha. That, " She broke into a soft laughter.

_This means…she's really here to kill me?  
She's even mocking my statement!_

"I'm not here to kill you, silly," She remained still, even when her voice was shivering in fear.

"Silly? How dare you…!"

_Why are you calling me silly when you are the stupid one?_

"Well, at least if you really think I'm an assassin then you should kill me now when you are able to," She didn't seem too afraid now. In fact, I wasn't too prepared when she actually phrased her words in a way she wanted to die real badly.

_I suppose she's just some commoner then. An assassin would have reacted reflexively towards my offensive attacks just now._

"So you are not?"

"Of course…" She flashed a serious look for a while. _Indeed, she's a…!_

"I'm not. Did I manage to fool you?" She laughed again, her tears rolling out uncontrollably. I let go of my hand and splashed scoops of water on it. I couldn't believe how that girl couldn't stop laughing at the incident just now, perhaps it was her way of relieving herself from the shock she experienced just now.

"And you thought the porridge was poisoned, " She giggled as she placed one spoonful into her mouth.

"If I die, it means I really am an assassin, " She started laughing all over again.

"Stop that," I didn't like the way she was now mocking at my erratic paranoia.

"Urgh!" She grabbed her throat and rolled her eyes in a fashion as if she had taken some lethal poison. She rolled on the floor struggling to catch a breather. Then she sat up and looked into my frowning expression with a cheeky smirk on her face. "An assassin, huh." She smiled to herself again and crawled carefully towards the untouched bowl of porridge.

_What an annoyingly rude girl._

"Eat. You need energy to get home," She looked up with her large violet eyes, and placed the wooden spoon on the tray.

"I…" I peered down at the milky colored liquid. Porridge in my context seemed a little more solid-like, with visible pounded rice grains.

"Or is it that fairies don't eat this? Then, what do fairies eat?" She looked at me with an eager expression.

_So I mistook her for an assassin and she thinks I'm a fairy.  
It isn't too bad being a fairy, is it?_

"We eat really luxurious stuff," I lied to her with a deadpan expression, as if it was a matter of fact.

"Really? Like?"

"Anmitsu,"

"Sounds yummy. What's that?"

"You mean…you don't know what is anmitsu?" I stared at her with a sense of disbelief. How could a person not know what anmitsu is? Isn't it one of the more popular desserts in…

_I realised that anmitsu was something only the noble families in Soul Society could afford.  
A rundown hut like this, would definitely not know of such stuff._

"Nope,"

Somehow, we ended up chitchatting. It wasn't exactly a friendly conversation – she would ask a lot of questions and I would pick some of them to answer. I do not like to talk to her, but I know she wouldn't stop asking if I said nothing. From her responses, she seemed like a real country bumpkin, almost oblivious to every foodstuff I brought up. She still believes that I'm some being from a celestial realm and that is why the names sound so foreign to her. She would try to picture some of the descriptions in her head and would end up with nothing because she hasn't even seen the raw ingredients before.

"Ah! Shall we go out on the streets to search for your food?" The girl clapped her hands as she made the sudden suggestion.

"What?"

"I'm pretty sure if we look for it in Rukongai, we will find something similar!" She smiled as she placed her hands around the bowl. I grabbed those frail hands unconsciously. It seemed like she was a bit sad that I didn't touch the porridge at all.

"I'll…"

"Hmm? It's okay; I'll leave it on the basin. I can always heat it up later and finish it,"

"No, I'll eat it," I took away the wooden spoon and drank it down – I didn't know I was that hungry that the semi-liquefied food tasted really good even though it was just morsels of rice and a lot of water.

"It must have tasted terrible, right?" She stood up and rinsed the bowl with water.

"Not…really,"

"You are too nice. By the way, you passed out that day along with this sword," She brought out Senbonzakura from the drawer.

"It must be something really important to you because you held on it so tightly," She commented as she pushed the blade towards me.

I took the blade quietly and looked around. I couldn't find my Shinigami hakama – she must have stashed it away somewhere too, I suppose.

"Ah your clothes! I took it out to dry so meanwhile you can wear these clothes. It's from the granny's son who left for Seireitei some time ago. Go get changed and we'll head down to Rukongai okay!"

I couldn't quite understand what she was trying to say.  
_Head down to Rukongai? Isn't this place Rukongai?_

"Rukongai, a place where you can find almost everything. Ah! They also happen to have some Obon festival going on in the evening – we can go visit it too! I'll dress something nice today then," She frantically searched for a better-looking yukata in her wardrobe.

"We don't have a room here, so…I'll change here while you change outside okay? No peeping!" She pushed me down the hollow steps and closed the door. I put on the spare summer yukata that she had told me to wear. The material used was coarse and the needlework was slipshod – it was not even close to the ones we have back in the Manor.

"Isn't this place Rukongai?" I asked curiously, hoping that she would be able to provide me with an answer.

"Ah, no it's not. We are at the suburbs of Rukongai," She shouted towards the window.

"Suburbs?"

"Yep. This is Inuzuri, to be exact, " The voice that came out of the window replied promptly. I climbed up those steps carefully while I tried to digest her sentence.

_Jii-sama, could you do me a favour?_

_Could you shake me real hard and wake me up with a bucket of cold water and reveal that it was a test of vigilance? How can I, a member of the Kuchiki family, visit a low-classed place like Inuzuri?_

_Don't test me like this, Jii-sama._

"Can I enter now?" I asked with my head leaning close to the door. I told myself that I probably should feign ignorance about the operations of this world to find out what she's really up to.

"Sure,"

"So, girl from Inuzuri," I called out to her as I sensed her picking up her fallen sash on the floor. As the door opened, I thought my eyes were playing games with me. That beautiful yukata that she was donning must have been some stolen loot from a rich family. The intricate designs and embroidery didn't even resemble that of Rukongai – it must be from one of the Royal families' craftsmen.

"Ah. I have a name, you know?" She pouted and crossed her arms.

_For an instant, I thought the patterns and swirls on the yukata looked a little too familiar. I have definitely seen them somewhere. Indeed, this must be some stolen item from one of the families._

"I don't want to know," I must have looked awkward when I turned my head away from the sight of her face.

_Pink yukata, a pair of violet eyes and weird laughing habits.  
__Who are you? Why do you seem so familiar?  
__A part of me seemed to know the answer, but it didn't want to reveal the truth to me._

_Inuzuri-girl, I would prefer if you just walk up to me now and tell me that all of these are not real.  
__That you are a figment of a distant past and that I would wake up very soon.  
__At least, it won't be too painful later._

"Oh," She pondered for a while before she looked at my face cautiously, as if she was waiting for a reaction to occur.

"In that case, let's head outside, Fairy-san! I can show you what's Rukongai is like!" She rushed out of the house as soon as she changed into the pair of dark wooden clogs from the cupboard.

_Why do we always get curious over things that are located on the other side of the wall?  
__Why am I keen to follow this girl in the pink yukata as if we were never strangers?  
__Jii-sama, I don't know why I'm doing this.  
__If you are about to wake me up, don't._

_Let me stay in this dream world a little longer._

* * *

**yu-pon's notes:**

In any case I shocked someone with an email notification that a chapter is back up, I apologise deeply (haha).  
Hello~I'm sorry for keeping you waiting for a chapter.

Thank you for coming to this chapter, and thank you for reading!

I have to do some translations here.  
Anmitsu is mentioned somewhere in the middle of the story. Well anmitsu is a Japanese dessert, with Azuki red beans, jelly cubes, syrup and fruits! (it's sweet) I know, Byakuya-san doesn't like sweet stuff right (there should be one chapter to explain why haha). It's not expensive, really - like 700 yen? Anmitsu just came up to my head because I had it like a week ago (oops) Let's just assume it's something really dear in Soul Society, okay? XDD

Last but not least, thank you for the reviews!

You guys are really sweet~ I hope to see everyone in the next chapter okay!

ほなおつー

yu-pon~


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